Thursday, October 4, 2007

Bruegel Blog Post Period 6

Bruegel, PieterLandscape with the Fall of Icarus c. 1558 Oil on canvasRight click image (or any other hyper link) to open in another window.

OPTIC. I find Walter Pauk’s theory quite useful when writing about an image.[1] The AP Art History Course also uses this Acronym as a successful approach to writing about visual art. I have adapted it here with further commentary and explanation in light of your specific goals.

Post your writing in the comment box with the following five categories. You will receive full credit (20 points) for one thousand words. (15 points) for 750 words. (10 points) for 500 words. (5 points) for 250 words. The point of this is pure description. What does your eye notice first? Then what? Think space, color, dimension, etc....

Overview: Conduct an Overview of the visual or graphic. I recommend an extensive brainstorming process here.

Parts: Key in on the Parts of the visual by noting any elements or details that seem important. The old cliché goes “a picture is worth a thousand words”, which translates to about three pages. I think this is a good rule of thumb, but by no means a fixed rule. Describe what you see. Where do your eyes go to first?Then what? Follow the natural progress of where your eyes go.Give as much detail as possible.

Title: Explain the Title (if one is present) and its relation to the piece of art. Even an “untitled piece” may tell you about the artist’s aesthetic.

Interrelationships: Use the title, or your theory, and the parts of the visual as your clues to detect and specify the Interrelationships in the graphic. In other words, this is where you develop your thesis about the image and connect ideas.

29 comments:

Landscape with the Fall of Icarus shows a wide, panoramic view of the sea, its coast, and the landscape surrounding it. In the foreground is the land by the coast that is leading to the ocean, the middle of the painting is the ocean, and the outer edge is the sun/sky and there is a city visible off in the distance. There are mountains in the far right hand corner as well. The most pronounced part of the painting is the man in the center of the foreground with the red tunic and the grey smock. He has dark colored hair, and he appears larger than any other aspect of the image. His face is hidden and cannot be seen by the viewer. He is following behind a rig with his horse, which is also a dark shade of brown. They are taking a path down along the coast, and there are some stairs or grooves in the earth around them. The horse is facing away as well, and is headed into an area that is very dark. The trees that surround the place where they are going are very thin and twiggy, and the leaves are sparse, but green and brown. Just below him, but in a much smaller scale in comparison to him, is another man with a blue tunic and grey pants. He is clutching a stick, almost as a support to stand or walk, and right next to him on the right is his dog. The dog is dark grey and both the man and the dog are facing toward the direction of the trees. The man is looking up, almost into the sky, and the dog is following suit. Around them is a giant heard of white and creamy sheep, about 12 are visible, and there are two darker figures present amongst the sheep, and they appear to be some form of cattle. They are grazing right next to the coast, and there are some dark bushes that separate them from the ocean. To the right of the land, a short distance out into the water, there is a ship with white sails, a dark hull, and three masts. The ship appears very old, and there is a crow’s nest on the middle mast. It looks as if it is being swept by the wind, and there are waves forming around it. The water is very dark here, and to the front of the ship, there is a pair of legs dangling out of the water. These would belong to Icarus, because he fell from the sky and plummeted to his death in the ocean. Behind him, on the shore, is a person with a white top pointing. His face and any other details about him cannot be seen. To the left of the ship is a wide stretch of clear, blue water that is much brighter than the water where Icarus’ legs are. The sun is shining brightly down on it, and there are a few ships in the center, but they are clearly far off in the distance, as they are much smaller in size than the large ship. Behind the ships and to the right, there are white mountains with snow covered trees. The sun reflects off the ocean, making a bright spot right in the middle. In the ocean on the left hand side is what appears to be the ruins of a castle or a building. It is grey, made of stone, and has a small doorway that looks like an entrance. To the left of the structure there is a small, black bird flying. There is a boulder to the right of the ruins, jutting out of the water. Behind this, there is a view of a costal city. It is very bright, flanked by mountains and rocky precipices, and above it, there is also a small black bird flying. The sky above the city is slightly darker blue, with some clouds and fog looming overhead. The title of the painting, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, represents what was happening at the time of Icarus’ demise. There is a close perspective of what is happening on the shore, while there is a distant perspective of the surrounding area and the sea. The title suggests that the landscape is the main focus of the painting, while Icarus is just an extra detail that just happens to occur when the painting was done. The suggestion implied by the title is enforced by the fact that Icarus is very small in size compared to the other figures in the painting, and unless you are careful, it could even be missed or looked over. Also, the light from the sun is reflecting off the main part of the painting, making the working class men in the front of image appear brighter while the area where Icarus has fallen is incredibly dark. The workers are going on with their daily work, and seem to be oblivious to Icarus and what he did. The two black birds in the background could represent Daedelus and Icarus because they were trying to fly before they got too close to the sun. The sun is so large because it is what caused Icarus to fall to his death, and thus, it is bringing the light to the rest of the area. The man with the walking stick is looking up at the sky, but he is looking in the opposite direction from where Icarus landed. However, the only man who seems to be acknowledging it is the man at the bottom in the white who is pointing, and he appears to be wearing a helmet. In conclusion, the artist Pieter Bruegel is depicting the fall of Icarus, but is focusing namely on the surroundings of the event. The contrast between the dark and the light represent the contrast between right and wrong. Icarus, who took a risk against his father’s advice, is in the dark, but the normal class workers are shining in the light. Icarus is smaller in proportion to the rest of the image, and the sun, the major component in the tale, is the largest part of all.

In the painting of the Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, Pieter Bruegel uses busy landscapes to hide the truth behind the painting. The painting was created in 1558, Bruegel painted mostly landscapes that involved peasants doing their normal everyday activities. Bruegel is also known for his style of painting, he would create stories with various scenes and combined them into one painting. Bruegel's style of painting enabled him to leave hidden messages in them because of the chaotic landscapes. Through a series of brainstorming I was able to get a better understanding of Bruegel's purpose of the painting. I noticed that his choice of color had relevance. For example when I first looked at the painting what caught my eye was the peasant that was working in the field with his horse, he was wearing a bright red shirt with a grayish vest or coat. He was the biggest character in the painting and the brightest character. Toward the left of him I noticed that there was a weapon or sword of some sort on the rock. I do not believe that that is as relevant as the character is but It was placed in the scene for a reason, like I had mentioned before Bruegel places things in the painting that may or may not have a message. The next piece I noticed was the sea. The sea is the second most colorful character in the picture. It has so many elements to it, for example it has the sun setting and many ships around the islands. The last things I noticed were small details which consisted of another peasant standing farther down from the peasant working in the field. He is looking up at something as he herds sheep with his dog. I also noticed a man who is sitting at the bank really close to the sea almost like he is trying to reach for something or he may be fishing. There is a turtle next to the man and I see something that almost appears to be a mermaid fin or a leg sticking out of the water. The colors on that side seem to be darker because the sun is not reaching that side anymore, the water is becoming an almost black color. The rest of the detail is surrounding all these characters. There are mountains on the far right that seem to me are covered in snow. On the far left there is a city or a town that is so far away it is very difficult to describe, but It looks like there is a castle or big house. It is the most visible object in the city. There is also a big rock that looks like something or someone is living there because there is a hole that appears to be a door in the front of the rock. The left side of the painting is the brightest side, maybe because the ships are heading toward that way and because there may be royalty living there. I think the peasants live in the darker side of the sea. The colors used in this painting all have their relevance, the brighter the color the more prone you are to noticing that scene in the painting and the darker the color the less you are prone to noticing that section. I also discovered that if the painting has smaller details they are harder to see, if they are bigger they are easier to interpret, colors, shapes and sizes play a key role in analyzing a piece of art. Besides researching and brainstorming the painting only with observations I decided to take it a step farther, I research the title of the painting. The title is called the Landscape with the Fall of Icarus I researched the title and I discovered that the title in french is De Val Van Icarus which I believe translates to the the landscape with the fall of Icarus. I wanted to know what it was originally titled, to know background information of the artist and the painting. In order to understand the title of the painting you have to know what every word meant. I looked up Icarus because I was not familiar with this word. What I found out was that he was a Greek mythological character. The story was that his father, Daedalus made his son, Icarus and himself a pair of wings to escape prison. The wings were made out of feathers and wax. Daedalus told Icarus not to fly too high or too close to the sun but Icarus chose to to be stubborn and not listen to his father. Icarus wax melted from his wings and he fell to his death in the sea. The sea he drowned in is known as the Icarian sea which is located near an island called Icaria. This myth opened new doors of information for me. In the painting the small detail I thought was a mermaid fin or a leg is Icarus who had fallen from the sky and is struggling to survive but everyone around him seem to be ignoring him. Around him are a lot of feathers just in the air which makes the painting seem almost real like he had just fallen from the sky. His father was not in the painting, Bruegel's reasoning for not adding him into the painting may have been because it would of given away the hidden message of the painting and the title of it had to do with just Icarus. Where Bruegel painted the painting may have took place near the island Icaria. On the left side of the painting he may have painted it to show the island that was named after Icarus, the sea is the Icarian Sea. The painting has so much History and Mythology tied to it, that is why I chose to research the title piece by piece in order to understand what it represented. Overall, the painting that Pieter Bruegel created entitled us to not only look at the big details but to look at the smaller details because that is where you are going to find the truth behind his work. The messages that the artist left has a deeper meaning than just a beautiful landscape it has plenty of history, real life events of peasants and the mythological events that were created about Icarus, but they both are united to create a new vision of art and to find the truth.

Pieter Bruegel’s painting, Landscape with the fall of Icarus, depicts the scene in the myth where Icarus has fallen into the sea after his wings have melted. The painting has all of the aspects f life going on at that time the myth took place. There is a farmer plowing his fields in the foreground and a large trading settlement in the background along with snow covered mountains to the west across the vast harbor leading to the sea in the center of the painting. I am guessing that this is Minos. There is also a small rock island in the middle of the harbor with a sole opening that probably leads to a cave or an underground labyrinth. If one does not have a keen eye, you may overlook the shepherd tending to his flock, looking up at the sky and wondering why he cannot just fly away like the seagulls above the water. The other fine point of the painting that one may easily overlook is the feet of Icarus as he falls into the water. They are sticking up out of the water and nobody seems to have noticed. He is just another foolish little boy who has not heeded the word of his father. The actual structure of the painting says a lot about itself. There is a lot of symbolism behind where certain things are placed within the picture. I noticed that there are three defined ships in the painting all with their sails pointing towards the settlement. All winds blow towards the civilization and the freedom. Perhaps this settlement was the destination that Daedylus and Icarus had in mind when they lifted off from Minos. Along the bottom of the painting depicts the life of the peasants and the serfs of the time who were born and died in the fishing villages of the Greek coast. This life is like the prison that Daedylus and Icarus were forced to live in. Along the top of the painting there is the Sun and a bustling trade settlement filled with beautiful white buildings that almost look like a depiction of Heaven. Everyone in the painting would have a better life if they could find a way to get there. Icarus had a chance but he did not head his father’s warnings. Icarus and his father were flying to a better life, towards the light and the heaven and leaving behind the dark and damp world of Minos represented by the dark colors chosen. In the middle of the harbor there is a small, rocky island with some thick vegetation at the back end of it. In the front of the rocky citadel of the island, there is a large door to a cavern. This may represent the challenge of making it through the labyrinth of life and ending up on the other side where life is greener and more beautiful. It is almost like a sacred grove on an island with a dungeon. Maybe it is the actual Minos. The vast harbor in the center of the painting separates two very different coasts. On the west coast there is the settlement surrounded by lush forests almost jungles and the east coast is comprised solely of snow-covered mountains that look inaccessible by explorers. There is no life on the east coast and all boats and life are on the west side of the painting. The peasant farmer wearing the grey and red clothes behind the horse and plow will never get out of that life. They never had lotteries back then. He is forced to work behind the plow for the rest of his life and perhaps that is why his head is painted facing downwards in a kind of sulking state because he is imprisoned in a life that he will never be able to get out of. There is also the shepherd and his sheep dog. The shepherd is depicted looking up into the sky daydreaming while his sheep are grazing at the seaside. He seems to be asking the God’s in his mind why he was born a shepherd and not a King. He wants to leave the island and explore the world like Icarus had the chance to. There is also a man who seems to be fishing at the shore and he is bending over the water with his hand in the air. He seems to be holding some sort of fishing line dangling over the water. Over his left shoulder, there is a tiny iguana-looking creature that reminds me of the snake from the Garden of Eden. It looks like the demon that persuades Adam and Eve to take a bite out of the apple but this time the snake/iguana has persuaded Icarus to fly towards the sun because of its warmth and beauty. Icarus failed to remember that the wax on his wings would melt the closer he flew towards the sun. The snake is small and blends in with the surrounding shrubbery and it looks like it is coming out of the tree branch; almost as if it is apart of the island of Minos. It does want to let go of Icarus and it looks like it’s laughing since he fell for the trap and into the ocean. One of the biggest things that I noticed before I even looked at the rest of the painting was that it seems as if nobody has noticed Icarus in the water. The idea definitely explains the title for me and its order of the words; “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus”. The significance of having the word “landscape” before the main character Icarus highlights his place in the society of the time. The farmer, the shepherd, the fisherman, and the boats all continue with their lives. The demonic snake laughs as it watches Icarus drown in the large harbor. The only thing that seems to be missing from the painting is Daedylus himself. Why isn’t he in the painting with Icarus? Why isn’t he shown continuing to fly toward civilization?

When I look at Bruegel’s Landscape with the fall of Icarus there are many things that pop out to me. The first thing I notice is the bright yellow sun in the sky, I find it ironic how the sun is bright yellow because it is said that yellow is a color that aids in people loosing their tempers. Also it is the hardest color for the human eye to take in. I feel like Bruegel did that purposely because he wanted the spectator to notice how bright the sun is and look at it first. It is ironic how the sun is bright and right below it is what I believe to be Icarus in the water. So I do believe the sun plays a big role in this picture and the actual story behind the fall of Icarus. Considering his father told him that the sun would melt his wax wings if he went too close. So I guess the concept of reaching for the “sun” plays a role in it. I also see a man pushing a cart. He does not look too happy because his head is down. I cannot see his face but I don’t think he is happy. Usually happy people have their faces up and visible. He is wearing a red shirt with some sort of over dress. He is headed down a really long wooden path. He seems to be on some sort of hill heading down to where I see some sheepherders. He is also the most emphasized part of the painting considering he is the largest aspect of the picture. This man must have a great role in this painting. There are also mountains in the far back corners of the painting. The mountains are somewhat large. I also notice that the mountains along with the sun and water are all in a different painting technique then everything else. They are all sort of smudged and blurry. And as you get closer the picture is clearer. I like this technique because it looks as if the setting is fading away. In the left corner there seems to be some kind of island in the distance. There is some kind of light coming from that corner of the picture. There is probably some civilization in that area of some sort. There are also two ships in the ocean. They have white sails and a brownish exterior. By the way their sales are moving drastically it seems to be a great amount of wind in the area. There also is a great deal of waves around the ships. So there must be some turbulence harming the ships. Behind the ships there is a man with a heard of sheep. There looks to be about fourteen sheep. The man also has a dog next to him. He is holding to some stick for a support system. He may have it just to help him heard the sheep. He seems to be looking up at something maybe the sky because it looks darker than the rest of the sky. There must be rain ahead because the sky is grayish moving towards the sunny area. There is a lot of contrast in the sky. I believe the whole theme of this painting is to convey the actual happenings of the fall of Icarus. The hot sun shows the amount of success some can reach. Icarus’ father told him not to go too close to the sun. As seen in the picture Icarus lands in the ocean face first. It seems to me like the man in the gray smock is Icarus’ father, bowing his head in shame. He must be depressed because his son failed and did not follow his great descriptive advice. His fall must have caused the waters to make an abrupt movement. That must caused the tricky waves and large wind flows. The man looking up at the sky may have been a friend, looking at the sky in disappointment and awe. The colors that Bruegel choses help convey the story very well. After Icarus’ fall it makes the whole world or landscape feel a dreary and down. This is so because they must have witnessed him fall. All the ships are headed to the previously mentioned civilization. I also notice that the civilization has brighter colors that than the closer ground. This must be the prison that Deadylus and Icarus had to live on. The darker colors must represent sadness and isolation. That may also be why the man wearing the red shirt is sad and depressed. There is a cave like structure in the middle of the water. I do not know what it must be, but it is gray in color. I suppose it might be a place where sea creatures live. Or a place where the sailboats can take a quick break. The boats may be the boats that bring the prisoners back and forth. I think I also see something swimming in the ocean on the lower right hand corner. I think that it is a person trying to get on the boat to head back to the other island.I feel as though the title has a lot to do with the idea that people are shaken by Icarus’ fall. He title’s the piece Landscape and the fall of Icarus because he wanted to put emphasis on Icarus’ fall. He puts him in the back of the picture. He does this because he wants to show what an impact his fall had on the world around him. The men on the island in the closer view of the picture are more affected by this entire problem. That is why they are more visible than Icarus himself. I like the colors that the painter chose; they were effective in the sense that he conveyed the scenes mood in a very good way. The sun is bright in order to show the happiness on the island closer to it and the grayish sky shows the sadness on the prison island. This was a very effective picture in the sense that it told a very important story about a fallen boy due to disobedience.

Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, was painted on oil canvas by Bruegel Pieter in 1558. It shows the occurrences during which Icarus falls into the sea and dies when his wings melt.

It is a normal spring day, during which workers toil. In the canvas, three men are shown to be working. They all work with animals and their job has something to do with the earth. They seem to be uninterested in the death of Icarus. The reason for this is that they do not turn their heads to look at Icarus when he was dropped into the sea from the sky. They just keep on doing their job and do not seem to care about Icarus’ death. In our society today, people are frequently indifferent to other people’s business. Most of the time, they are busy with their own work and they do not have time for other things. Different shades of color are used. The top part (sky) of it uses some light and well-mixed color. The bottom part (land) of the canvas uses some dark and dull colors. This shows that the heaven (the sky) is a relaxed and great place to be while the earth is tedious and dull.

The setting is well-described through the different images in this canvas. The sun is just beginning to dawn at the horizon. Half of the sun is on top of the horizon. It is yellow and it creates bright rays of light in parts of the sky. It creates a reflection in the water. The sky has taken up about 30 percent of the spaces in the canvas. The sunlight covers about 30 percent of the sky. The sunlight is yellowish orange, mix with a bit of pink. The sky is blue and purple, mix with a bit of black.

There are mountains on the left and right side of the canvas. They are white and peach. There are shadows lying on top of the mountains. They occupy about 2/15 of the canvas. There are houses that locate close to the center of the canvas (closer to the top and the left side of the canvas), near the mountains that locate on the left. These houses are the smallest objects that can be found in the canvas. The houses are basically make up of three colors—red, orange, and yellow. There are many ships in the canvas. The sails are tied tightly to the masts. This is true because the sails do not flow around freely even when the strong wind blows on it. There is a castle-like rock within the sea. This rock is surrounded by grass on the left side.

An island-like land is shown in the canvas. There is a farm, a herding area, and a place to fish. It looks like a village, out in the country side. However, since it is surrounded by water, I assume that it is an island. It is not a harbor, because there isn’t a dock or anything like that. There are trees all around. They occupy about 30 percent of the canvas. These trees look dead; they do not have much leaves on them. The color of the leaves and branches are blackish. There are cracks and dead-looking branches on the land.

A man dresses in a red long-sleeve shirt and shorts is plowing the land. A horse is helping him out and sharing this heavy job. The land is half-plowed. The place where it is not plowed is greenish, and the place where it is plowed is brownish. The farm, together with the cow and the man occupy about 25 percent of the canvas. It is a small farm compare to what a farm is actually like. The cow and the man are large compare to the other objects in the canvas. The man seems to be as large as the ship. The reason for this may be that the farm, cow, and man are the objects that are supposed to look like they situate the closest to us. They are at the bottom left of the canvas; the land stretches from the left side of the canvas to well-pass the center.

A man in a blue long-sleeve shirt is carrying a brown basket on his back. He is holding onto a stick that is longer in length than he himself. He is herding his sheep. All the sheep are white with the exception of two black ones. A black dog with a white face is sitting patiently next to the man. They locate at a lower level of land than the man plowing the land with his cow. A man dresses in a white long-sleeve shirt is kneeling at the edge of the sea to fish. He locates at a lower level of land than the man herding the sheep. Everybody is busy with their own job. They are all workers. Their jobs relates to the earth and the sea. They all have something to do with animals. A boy (Icarus) has fall down into the sea, head first. And, he is sinking into the sea with his legs sticking out. He is located at the far right of the canvas.

The title of this piece of art is Landscape with the Fall of Icarus. The canvas is showing the landscape during which Icarus falls into the sea and dies. At the time the sun melts the wax on Icarus’ wings, he falls into the sea and dies. This canvas shows the occurrence at which Icarus falls. People are working on their own job and are mindless to what is happening to Icarus.

People are indifferent to occurrences unrelated to them. In today’s society, we are all so busy that we do not have any time for basically anything. Due to this, we do not even tend to care for other people’s business. Similarly, the workers on the land and at the sea do not seem to care about Icarus’ fall into the sea. They just concentrate on their work. This kind of society is not inferior. We should always care about other people.

The piece of artwork is expressive. It is able to spread its message quite strongly. Humans are inferior and selfish. They only care about themselves. Their mindlessness towards other people is, nevertheless, what makes them inferior. Also, our society is corrupted. This can be tell by the fact that the colors of the trees and the land are dull while the color of the sky is bright and colorful. This suggests that heaven is the only uncorrupted place one can find.

In the Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, Pieter Bruegel captures the one of the most valuable lessons from “The Story of Deadalus and Icarus” on his flat canvas. With the use of light and color, Bruegel shows his approval to the notion that the middle path is the safest. He shows life in the middle of the canvas and isolation accompanied with death one each side.

When first exposed to Bruegels’ painting, the viewer is immediately drawn to the energetic yellow sun in the distance. The position of the sun suggests that it is not day or night, for it is located in between the two extremes. The bright semicircle is surrounded by a yellow smoky cloud that vanishes as it approaches the sides of the painting. Gray-blue clouds eventually hide it causing the appearance of thunderstorms coming from the northeast and northwest. Following the centerline of the painting, a cream colored sail is being whipped around by the wind. Unfortunately, the sail can’t fly freely because it is attached to the tall poll that makes up part of a sailboat on the right side of the painting. Although it cannot fly away on its own, it is leading the way to the center of he painting. Southwest of this sail, stands a peasant watching over his sheep. He is wearing a sky blue shirt with a brown vest on top. He is holding a long stick that seems to be giving him support. The man is being illuminated by the sun and protected by his dog on his right side. Cotton white sheep are eating around him reflecting their masters’ comfort. On a platform higher than the peasant and his sheep stands a young man pushing his horse down a hill. He is wearing a long sleeve shirt, similar to that of the shepherd, but it is the color of fire. This vibrant orange is the only color, used by Bruegel, which lies on an opposite side of the color wheel. This unique spark of color suggests the freedom of the man. On top of his shirt he wears a gray long tunic that covers most of his backside. The young man himself seems to be standing on a fairly balanced part of the hill. He has his right foot and most of his body set on grass and his left foot set on dirt. His horse, on the other hand, is standing on dirt going down the hillside. It seems like the power of the horse is pulling the peasant west, forcing him to step down. The horse is approaching one of the lifeless sides of the painting. There stand a tall tree with weak branches a scarce number of leaves. At the foot of this tree there are some bushes the color of mud. The land that surrounds these few forms of life it nothing but brown dirt, which turns darker in the distance. Following back on the left side of the painting there exists a small village. The front of the architectural structures is illuminated by the sun, which makes their form noticeable. But further back, where the rays of the sun no longer reach, the structures are nothing but a blur. On the opposite side of this small village there are mountains covered in snow. It seems like life is no longer attainable in this area for it is isolated and gray, surrounded by the thunderclouds above. Closer to the sailboat, there is a small peninsula with a patch of life. There seem to be some dark green bushes attempting to grow. At the shore of this peninsula the water is depicted with blue-greenish color, but as the waves approach the southeast, the water turns brown. On the left side of this dark water, two of legs emerge. The parson seems to be drowning because his head is completely submerged. A man sitting on the shore, wearing a white tunic, is watching this poor man drown with no intentions of helping him. His dark hat gives the impression that he is an older man with experience and knowledge. His sitting position shows that he has given up and is tired of giving warnings. The man in white points at the drowning man, as is he were saying I told you so.

The Landscape with the Fall of Icarus clearly depicts a life lesson taught by Icarus’ father. In “The Story of Deadalus and Icarus” Icarus’ wings burn because he is incapable of listening to his wise father. Before their flying adventure began, Deadalus warned his son not to fly too high or too low, but to stay in the middle path because it is the safest. Being the adventurous guys that he is, Icarus ignores his father’s advice and flies too close to the sun. As a consequence, the wax on his wings is melted causing his downfall. Bruegel depicts this valuable lesson on his canvas with the use of color and life. The middle of his painting is clearly illuminated by the energetic sun, which brings life to the land. On the other hand, he shows the danger of the extremes by painting almost no life on the sides. The sky in the east and west is cloudy and gray suggesting danger. The land inhabits very few, almost lifeless, vegetation. The brown water on the bottom right corner gives a sense of loneliness and regret. In fact it is here where Bruegel discretely shows Icarus after his fall. He is helplessly drowning as his father watches over him with sorrow.

Over all, Bruegel’s painting is relevant to the story of Icarus and his father. But it also represents Bruegel’s agreement to the lesson taught by Deadalus. Through his use of light, colors, and life, Bruegel successfully shows that it is better to stay balanced than to go to the extremes. The centered sun that illuminates the life in the center is a representation of the advantages of staying in the middle. On the other hand, the cloudy skies and lifeless land represents the danger of the extremes.

In the painting Landscape with the fall of Icarus, Pieter Bruegel shows an old country village on the shore of the ocean. It depicts farmer people at work, the ocean in the background, and a city on the far left set back, and the sun and the horizon about a quarter down from the top of the canvas. On the far right are mountains, the clouds surrounding the sun appear gray and cloudy.

In the lower left portion of the canvas there is a man pushing a small, crude wooden machine which appears to be removing grass. Attached to this machine there is a donkey. It is dark brown with a blonde tail an main. On the donkey’s neck is where the wooden machine that the man is pushing. The man and the donkey are on a hill, where the grass is yellowy brown. The hill is steep and it looks as though the man and the donkey have made a path down the grassy, narrow hill. The path is curvy and there is lines in the dirt from which the machine has made. Surrounding the path which the man has made are twisty roots and brown leaves protruding from them. There tall trees, dark brown with brown leaves nearing towards the bottom of the path.

The man pushing the wooden machine attached to the donkey looks Caucasian or from European decent because of his light skin. His back and the donkey’s is toward the viewer, headed down the steep hill or mountain. There is still a chunk of yellowy-green grass in which the man and donkey have left to sow. This patch of grass is on a flatter surface compared to the steepness headed downward towards the vanishing point. The man has on a bright red shirt, loose on the arms and tight at the wrist. He has on a grayish green dress which ripples from the waist down. He has on some type of brown tights or leggings and black shoes with no strings. He has on a brown cap which covers half way up his head and all the way around. His face is not revealed. He has black short hair his neck is revealed. His left arm and leg are forward, right leg behind him and his right hand on the wooden handle of the machine. In his left hand, he is grasping a whip. The man is lightly whipping the horse on his behind. His back prohibits the viewer from seeing his right arm.

Below the man, appearing to be at the end of the steep path there is a sandy shore. It is higher then the ocean. Below the sandy shore there are trees with dark green leaves. On the shore there is a man and about twenty white sheep and one black one. The man is leaning on a long stick, taller the he is. His arms are wrapped around it. He is looking toward the upper left side of the canvas. He has on brown knickers, dark shoes, and a blue-gray shirt. He also looks from European decent because of his light skin. He has a bag on his back. Next to him is a brown dog, sitting next to him, looking obedient.

To the lower right of the man on the sandy shore, there is a large ship with big yellowy sails. The ship is large with two tall masts. The ship is old looking. The largest sail in the front of the boat is blowing towards the middle of the canvas. The ship is headed towards the left side of the canvas.

On the middle left side of the canvas there is a large rock formation surrounded by ocean. There is a whole, which looks like a door in the rock formation. Behind the rock there are trees and bushes.

In the ocean there are ships headed toward the horizon line in the distance. They look similar to the old ship at the lower right of the canvas. There is a city far off toward the left hand side which protrudes out into the ocean. There appears to be many buildings and houses. It looks highly populated. Behind the town there are high mountains. The town looks bright, and warm colors are used. The mountains are gray and sandy colors. Across from the city on the right side of the canvas close to the horizon lines are mountains. They are off white and gray. The sky over both sides is gray.

On the horizon there is the sun in the middle. It appears to be rising. The circle of the sun is not completely seen. The is yellow. Only around and above the sun is a yellowy orange. It is very far in the distance in comparison to the man and the donkey. It’s reflection can be seen in the ocean.

The ocean is dark towards the shore and lightest in the middle. It is dark blue on the shore and fades into a yellowy blue-green. There are small, lines towards the shore, representing small waves. It is calm except for the small waves toward the shore.

Towards the lower right of the canvas, there is the shore. Only the edge of the shore is exposed because of the roots, branches and leaves protruding from the hill at the lower left side of the hill. The shore is rocky. There is a medium sized dark bird perched on one of the dark brown branches protruding from the left at the top of the hill. Beneath the bird there is a man sitting on the edge if a rock, with back to the viewer, so only his top left thigh is seen. Next to his thigh is a small cup. The man has on a which long sleeved loose shirt, a black hat, and he has red hair. On arm appears to be rested on his leg, the other arm is pointing to his front, out towards the ocean.

Near the shore, in the ocean, legs are shown flailing from the ocean. These are the legs of Icarus. One leg is flailing out of the ocean, one is almost all the way in the ocean. He is appeared to of fallen straight down. His legs are peach in color. The ocean is white around his legs. The legs are small, appearing off in the distance.

Overall the painting has a calm, warm tone. It shows men hard at work, ships, and cities. It shows industrialization. There is also an untamed aspect of the painting too. The gray mountains at the right upper side show this. The legs of Icarus seem to be the only action in the painting that look as though they do not belong. The legs are flailing, showing struggle. He is the only being in the picture that appears to be struggling, working against the elements. Most of the other aspects of the painting appear to be content and warm. The sky, mountains, untamed trees, and rocky shores are the only aspects that are darker, grayer colors. Only the industrial aspects and the sun in are warm, bright colors.

Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, by Pieter Brueghel depicts the moment when the wax on Icarus’ wings melt, causing Icarus to plunge to his death as he falls into the ocean. Brueghel portrays the scene with minimal amounts of bright, warm colors completely enclosed by darker colors, creating a gloomy atmosphere. All the colors flow creating the idea that everything in the painting is part of the scenery. The most eye-catching part of this painting is the sun. At first glance of the entire painting the brightness of the sun draws the viewer to stare directly into the sun. In reality, the sun is cosmic and its light extends far across the lands. In this picture, the sun is small, which shows that it is a great distance away from where the artist is standing. The sun’s light is limited and does not extend very far because it entirely surrounded by the darker colors of the ocean, mountains, and skies. Just below the sun, the island of Crete can be seen. Like the sun, the island of Crete is bounded by the ocean. The ocean excludes the sun and island from reaching civilization, where life seems to be apparent. The ocean is vast and endless. It covers about one third of the painting, however, it stretches far beyond and out of the painting, and creating a mystery of its exact magnitude. It also allows the viewer to imagine its size to any extent they wish. The ocean is also powerful. It is main source of isolation in this painting. It separates the sun and island of Crete from the rest of civilization. The only objects which seem to be able stay afloat on the ocean appear to be another island which is towards the left area of the ocean and many small boats. Although small these fragile boats appear to be the only means of transcending over the isolating obstacle of the ocean. The most interesting concept of the ocean in this painting is its color. The ocean is a cool blue color in the area where it hides the sun. This promotes the idea that the atmosphere may be a bit on the cold side. It has a warmer yellow tone in the center of the painting where it does not touch any other object. The viewer might see a relaxing calmness in this particular area, thus he will spend more time concentrating on this particular portion of the painting. The warmness of that segment of the ocean plays a sinister role in diverting the viewer’s attention from the hideous truth within this painting. As the ocean draws closer to the viewer’s perspective the color becomes dim and shadowy. The faint colors aid in creating a dull and listless mood within the painting. It also plays an important role in masking struggle within the picture. Once the viewer thoroughly explores the painting, he will notice that there is a pair of legs sticking out the ocean. The viewer would assume that these legs belong to Icarus because the entire picture depicts the moment Icarus falls into the ocean. Since there is no other form of human life in the ocean, it is most logical to assume that the pair of legs can only belong to Icarus. The color tones of his legs blend evenly with the murky colors of the ocean, causing Icarus’ existence to be hidden by the ocean. Right below the struggling Icarus is a fisherman. He sits on the minute land available to him. It is interesting to note that he is completely unaware of Icarus’ existence because he portrays no element surprise by the traumatic experience right above his head. To the left of Icarus is a herder tending to his many livestock. Interestingly enough is that the herders and his animals also do not notice Icarus’ as he struggles in the ocean. The herder’s blue shirt blends in with the ocean blue background he touches. His pants are dark brown. They match the light brown color of the earth he stands upon, but they do not blend because the color of the pants is distinct. To the left of the herder is the farmer. He is the most exemplified life form within this painting. He is physically larger than the sun. Also, his colors stand out more than the sun. The farmer is wearing a weak fainted colored tunic which matches the color of the grass he is currently plowing. The most distinct aspect of his clothes is his burning red shirt which he wears under his dull colored tunic. The farmer is plowing the land available by directing the horse which carries the plow across the untilled land. The horse is a dark brown color which matches the color of the tilled soil in its background, but is distinct so the viewer can differentiate between the horse and soil. Above and below the horse, plants and trees can be seen. Further above the horse, civilization can be seen. It is distant and seems hazy from the viewer’s standpoint. Lastly, above civilization is a dark and gloomy sky which watches over the melancholy world below it. The title, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, is directly related to the entire painting. The painting depicts the exact moment when Icarus falls to his demise. The landscape is vast, and Icarus is small. It shows that Icarus’ death is miniscule and completely insignificant to the painting entirely. If he was not present, the painting would not have been affected by any significance. The title and the blending aspect of colors suggest that every aspect of this painting connects to nature because all forms of civilization blend in with nature. The painting consists solely of a landscape. It seems that the living organisms present in this painting become one with nature. The farmer’s tunic blends in with the color of the untilled soil below him. The farmer’s horse matches the color of tilled soil. The herder’s clothes flow with the background of the ocean and shore. The town merges with the grey sky above it. Every aspect of human life matches with its background of nature. Brueghel creates a masterpiece through his brilliant use colors and blending techniques. He is able to use color to blend the living forms of life with the enervated colors of nature. Brueghel does an outstanding job at masking the most important aspect of his painting: Icarus. He is remarkable because he makes Icarus, a vital piece of this work of art, seem insignificant. Overall Brueghel accomplishes to depict the dismal scene of Icarus’ demise in a unique manner. He does not concentrate on the doom of Icarus by using exuberant colors to attract the viewer’s attention, but by masterfully integrating Icarus into the depressing atmosphere of the entire landscape.

The oil painting, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, was painted by Pieter Bruegel in 1558. In the painting, Bruegel depicts the scenery in which Icarus’s wings are melted by the sun and is thus thrown into the sea. The general overview of this painting is gloomy because almost ninety-five percent of the colors used are dark.In the painting there is only one image that my eyes were pulled towards, which is the bright red cloth the farmer is wearing. The farmer is wearing black shoes and what appears to be a pair of tight brown pants. His dress or kimono is grey just like any other dull color around him. Beside this farmer was his tamed horse pulling a wooden plow to cultivate the field. The horse is brown and has blond hair; or it could be the reflection of white hair off of the yellow sun. There is a large ship floating in the sea directly to the right of the farmer. That ship has two flags at the top of its two pillars. On those two flags is a red symbol, perhaps of a nation or their crest. Also on the ship are three large sails, which two of them being blown by the wind. Five other ships are in the teal-colored sea. There is another person to the right of the farmer. It is the herder leaning on his pole with his head facing the sky. He is wearing a blue shirt and a brown sack on his back. With him there are more than twenty cattle in addition to his brown dog. By the lower right corner of the painting there is a man with a red head. He is extending his arm. What for, I don’t know. He may be a fisherman holding out his rod or pointing at something in the water. I don’t think he is pointing at the pair of legs because his direction is not towards the splashing. The pair of legs in the water is perhaps Icarus’s legs, struggling in the sea. Further left, there is a stone fortress in the middle of the water, with what seems to be a doorway. This may be the home of Icarus and Daedalus from which they took flight. I also notice two birds flying in the sky. One is a great distance ahead of the other. Near the top there is a city with many colorful buildings, yet none of the colors are vivid enough to attract eyes. Near the dock of the city lies a large castle that extends into the sea. Surrounding the sea and city are mountains which also have no color. Towards the top right there is a mirage looking island. It has a large pension and several trees. The sun is the second object most people would stare at after the red shirt. The yellow sun illuminates everything in the picture. I think that without the sun, the bright red would be too much of a distraction when looking at the picture. The brightness of the sun helps balance that out, letting a viewer enjoy the rest of the picture. I believe that the role of the red shirt and bright sun is to create harmony. Every tree or form of vegetation is painted with dark colors. One of the bushes does not even have leaves. Also on that same bush there seems to be a dark brown creature. It may be like a turtle or a bird. One technique I noticed Bruegel integrated was transparency to solidity. From the sun, at the top, objects are not very clear and some of the ships are transparent. Notice the mountains closest to the sun as they are the least visible. As the eyes move down the painting towards the red shirt, everything becomes more solid. Nothing far away from the sun melts away; it is only those that are too close to the sun that are effected. The title Landscape with the Fall of Icarus is used to depict the tragedy of Icarus. As stated in the title, the canvas is a landscape. It also shows the landscape of which Icarus is to fall and die in. Bruegel takes the details of the poem and integrates them into each stroke of his painting.The small details in the visual are important to the story of Icarus. The two birds on the left may represent Daedalus and Icarus. Integrated with the transition of transparency, it would make sense that the first bird is Icarus. He flies too high and too close to the sun, into the transparency where objects disappear. What goes up must come back down. And indeed, Icarus does fall deep into the darkness of the painting where he is forgotten and unnoticed. Bruegel uses color and techniques to show the situation of Icarus’s fall as dull and depressing. The calmness brought by the dark colors produce the same calm feeling as the people around Icarus. They did not care about the boy who lost his wings at all. They continue with their life and go on with constructing the blocks of civilization. The painting gives a meaning to how far one can go without passing the limits. Civilization is advanced and should not try anything too radical because there is a big risk in destruction. Humans should mend with nature and their environment. It is safe and the natural thing to do.This painting generates the energy and mood of Icarus’s fall as well as hidden details that define our world. The landscape has an elegant with its flow of colors and details. Objects that appear closer are clearer than those far in the back. The harmony created by the sun and vivid red is used cloak the small details of the world, such as a hidden sanctuary of tranquility behind the trees. The visual depicts the risks one takes and how silent the fall would be. Looking at this picture may give a state of calmness, and it may even induce sleepiness if stared on for a period of time!

The Paintings title is Fall Of Icarus. The title its self indicates that there is something going wrong with Icarus. You can assume this without even looking at the painting.

In Bruegels Painting Of Icarus it is a painting of landscape. There are many mountains in the background along with a city. Also there are three men in the foreground of the picture. The land is surrounded by water and there is a small island in the middle. Several boats are in the water, some big, some small.

The three men are all doing something in the picture. The man closest to the viewer is pushing a rake like plow with a horse pulling it. The man is wearing peasant like clothing an orange-reddish shirt with a cloth like apron over it. The apron is very wrinkled in the back. The man looks like he has brown tights on and black shoes. You cannot see the face of this man but he looks like he has a hat on. The mans head is down towards the ground. This could mean he is highly concentrated or he is depressed or possibly overworked. As you look around him you can tell that he has been plowing the field for a while, as he is almost done. Also the horse that is pulling the cart looks extremely tired it looks like it is moping down the hill. The other man is down to the far right of the picture. The only thing you can see is his back because he I kneeling down towards the water. He is wearing a white shirt and a hat. He looks like he is trying to fish something out of the water. He could possibly be a fisherman or he could have dropped something into the water. But a little ahead of him there is an interesting site. There are legs kicking out of the water. This could possibly be Icarus after he crashed. The legs look as if they are moving rapidly out of the water. The man could possibly be trying to save that person. Then there is the third man who is standing below the field that is being plowed on a flat piece of land. He is standing with his arms crossed hugging what looks like a walking stick. His facial expression looks displeased or possible worried or scared. I believe that he is Daedulus because he looks worried. Sheep or cows on this piece of land surround him. There is one sheep that is standing by his side and it looks like this man has a leash around the sheep. The man has on a blue shirt and greenish pants. He also has a backpack on his back that looks full.

The landscape that is closest to the viewer the foreground of the picture is shaped weirdly. Also the man with the plow is at the highest point of the picture. This could mean that he has a greater meaning to the picture because the artist painted the man bigger and closer to the viewer. The other two men in the picture are smaller and look farther away then the man pushing the horse.

The trees and bushes in the picture look like they are dying. They are a brownish or dark color. There are no colorful bushes or trees. This could indicate that the picture is not a happy one. Even that land that is being plowed looks like it has been used many times and that there is no hope for it.

The ocean that is located near the kneeling man and kicking feet is very dark. It is almost a brownish blackish color. This could indicate that a tragedy is occurring around that area, which is most likely true because of the kicking feet that are coming from that area. The rest of the water that is in the background is a bright blue. The sun is reflecting off the water, which gives it that bright look.

In the background the sun is setting on the horizon. It is a big yellow ball that is reflected on the ocean and in the sky. The middle of the sky is very bright from the sun. The rest of the sky is a bluish color that is darker around the edges of the picture. I believe that the sun is setting because of the man pushing the horse. He looks tired and the field is almost all plowed which could indicate that he has been plowing all day. Usually the plowing of the field takes a whole day and as the sun sets the day is coming to an end along with his plowing job. Also the sun setting could indicate a life coming to an end. The rising of the sun indicates a new day its like a new birth into the world. But the setting of the sun indicates the opposite, which is the ending of the day or a death.

The city that is in the left side of the background looks large and busy. It doesn’t have a dark casting around it like the landscape of the foreground does. Instead it is well lit. There looks like there are many tall buildings in the city. On the opposite side of the city there is mountains that look like there is little inhabitants there. The area looks undeveloped, which is the total opposite of the city that looks well developed. Also the island in the middle looks like it has one or two small buildings on it. But it doesn’t look as busy as the city. The boats in the water are large and impressive looking. There are two large ones and then several small sailboats that create a peaceful look in the water of in the distance.

The first thing that catches my eye is the man pushing the plow with the horse. I think this is because it is the biggest object in the picture. The second thing that caught my eye was the kicking leg in the water. This is because your eyes are drawn towards the darker color surrounding it because it is unlike the rest of the picture.

The colors that the artist uses create a sense of trouble in the foreground of the painting. The background can be interrupted as peaceful, because of the way the light hits it. In the foreground the three men represent troubled times. And the color the artist uses indicates this.

In the painting, “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus”, Pieter Bruegel shows the relationship between man and nature, which also in a sense represents God. The artist uses techniques such as allegory, color, and placement to convey the message: Nature is stronger than man. When I looked at the painting, the first thing I noticed was the man’s red long-sleeved shirt, which is a little below the center of the painting. The color red is bright and easily grabs the viewer’s attention. After noticing the man’s shirt, I realized that this character is the ploughman that Ovid mentions in “The Story of Daedalus and Icarus.” He is concentrated and working hard to plow the field with his horse or donkey. The fields must be plowed in order to grow food for eating and selling. This connection sparked my search to find the other two working-class men. To the right of the ploughman, the Shepard stands with his sheep. The Shepard is looking up at the sky. He may have just seen Icarus fly by, or the Shepard may be praying to God while looking into the heavens. The Shepard watches the sheep and raises them for their wool, which will be made into clothes and sold for profit one day. Further to the right, the fisherman sits on a rock with his back faced to us. He is patiently waiting for his catch of the day. The fish may be tonight’s supper or tomorrow’s profit. These three men are related because they are all using nature for survival. They depend on the earth that God has provided them with in order to survive and make money. The ships in the background represent the trading industry. They depend on the ocean, weather, and wind and water currents to make their voyages successful. If nature wasn’t on their side, the merchants and manufacturers would lose business. There is also civilization further in the distance. The city consists of many buildings and other architectural structures. Even from the distance, the city looks wealthy and populated. Advancements in civilization mean that the people probably have advancements in technology. Right below the grand civilization is a giant rock fortress, which represents the island of Crete, which Daedalus and Icarus are stranded on. The painter paints the island gray because it is either largely made up of rocks, or the color gray represents doom and future death On the bottom right hand corner of the painting, between the fisherman and the ship, lays a pair of flailing legs. The title, “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus”, give ownership to the legs. Bruegel doesn’t show the entire man, but he hints that these legs belong to Icarus. Surrounding the legs are feathers, which came from Icarus’s wing. Bruegel captures Icarus’ fall when the wax on Icarus’ wings melted because he approached the sun closer than he should have. Icarus attempts to defy nature and the laws of gravity by flying. The legs are almost invisible. I didn’t notice them until I examined the whole picture, again, for a second time. Bruegel places Icarus in the ocean, showing how lowly God or the gods see view him. The gods feel that Icarus is trying to challenge them. The next highest level is the civilization off in the distance. Even though they are not as daring as Icarus to challenge the gods, the city is home to people who make advancements, hoping to one day surpass the gods. Higher than the civilization are the 3 working class men who are toiling the earth. They have respect for the gods and know their place in life. They know that their duty remains in the lands and that it is their job to take care of it and use it accordingly. These men are smart enough to know that they are mortals and should not risk their lives angering the gods by challenging their power. The sky and the sun are at the top. The atmosphere represents the heaven and the gods that reside there. The gods have the power to observe the people’s everyday lives and the people’s actions. Like many Greek myths, sometimes the gods may choose to enter the human realm in the form of other human beings, animals, or plants to even more closely observe them. On the left side of the painting, Bruegel’s trees are strong and full of life. However, on the right side, there are almost no trees. The trees are smaller, almost to the size of a bush, and are nearly falling off the plateau; its roots are detached from the ground. The lighter and warmer colors such the sky in the background, the sun setting in the horizon, and simple clothes of the ploughman, the Shepard, and the fishermen represent the good aspects of nature. The cooler and darker colors such as the surrounding clouds, the part of the ocean where Icarus has fallen into, and the island of Crete respect the bad aspects of nature. The cooler and darker colors may also represent the evil in men. I am also aware that Pieter Bruegel’s “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” was painted in 1558. This is around the same time as the Renaissance. Bruegel’s painting meets some of the characteristics of Renaissance painting. The openness of the atmosphere and the horizon represent the infinite potential of man. Renaissance men believed that humans could achieve anything he desired as long as he put his full potential into his work. God has given man life superior to animals and plants and have provided them with a world full of valuable resources to be manipulated and used for his own benefits as well as for the better of his own kind. Bruegel also uses the painting technique Chiaroscuro, which was popular during the Renaissance period, to use a single source of light to put in the lights and the shades of the painting. Chiaroscuro allowed the painter to creator greater depths in his painting, making it more realistic and believable. The viewer, then not only sees the painting, but becomes a part of the painting. .Pieter Bruegel’s “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” is a symbolic piece of art, revealing the consequence of one foolish man who tried to defy the gods. The painting serves as a lesson to others, so they wouldn’t make the same mistake.

In the painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus depicts the outcome of Icarus in his flight and his surrounding landscape. The first thing that my eyes look at is the sun. Is seems to be the vocal point of the painting because it’s placed near the center of the painting and of course it is the brightest object in the picture. And of course it plays an important role in Icarus death. Because the sun us setting, it cast a shadow around the outer of the painting creating a parallel world of darkness and light. In the light of the sun it shows the vast sea with many ships and two islands. I assume that one of the islands that looks like a prison made of stone is Crete the island where Daedalus took his flight from in his bird like wings. Also in the light are a ploughman, shepherdess, and fisherman. If you notice they are all workers who are doing their job. The ploughman is wearing a bright red shirt and a dress over it is working with his horse to plough the land which seems to be very defining and almost like a Zen garden. The ploughman is painted right in front of the picture where he is elevated higher than the shepherdess, all you could see is the side of his red face but looking at the way he plough with one feet on his Tipp toe and the other pushing forward shows that he is exerting force into doing his job and working hard so he can finish his work. It seems like he is almost done with it. Because the piece of land that he’s working on looks small. Underneath the ploughman is the shepherd who is on a land that protrudes out towards the sea. He is standing almost in the middle of the painting looking up at the sky hugging a long stick with his dog by his side. The shepherd facial expression looks like he’s having some deep thoughts and is feeling the breeze of the wind against him. While he’s thinking the dog sits quietly and the sheep’s are browsing for food and in the crowd of sheep’s are two black ones. Down towards the right side of the painting is the fisherman crouching down towards the water where the back of his head and back is to be seen. He is also busy doing his work, I assume this because of his body language such as crouching and extending one arm out to either throw or lift something from the water. The trees are much defined because there aren’t too many leaves. There are plants and twigs coming out surrounding the shepherds and ploughman lands. The shade of the front of the painting where the workers are is in shades dull shades. But if you look at the workers themselves they have colors in them such as the red shirt for the ploughman, blue shirt for the shepherd and the hair for the fisherman. The ships on the sea are in motion because the sails are blown by the wind from the east side. The ships sails make it seem as though the wind is blowing hard because the sails are sprung out. It looks like the ships are sailing toward the coast of the city. There are many building and colors in the city with the mountain being its foreground. The workers are far away from the city which makes sense because they are away from the city life which results in their jobs to be doing what they are doing. And then there’s poor Icarus who has fallen into the sea faraway from Crete, near the fisherman. Icarus’s has fallen head first with his legs kicking in the air above the water where half of his body is no where to be found. And above him are the feathers floating down from the wings that were on his back. This part of the painting looks very dramatic because the painter chooses to show that Icarus has no way of living when plunged head first. Around his legs are the caps of the small current that Icarus has made in his fall. Also he is placed in the dark and gloomy side of the painting where the water seems black and almost even poisonous. In this painting Icarus is the the vocal point but almost like an add-on to the picture. If you look at the workers they do not look shocked or startled but continue to do their jobs. And even in the title of the poem it seems that Icarus is just a minor. So the whole painting is more about the landscape than Icarus.

The painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Pieter Brueghel is extremely detailed and is full of symbols that are related to Ovid's masterpiece, "The Story of Daedulus and Icarus". When first looking at this painting, the eye is overwhelmed with many images that the mind slowly absorbs. Each image is slowly noticed one by one eventually create a whole grand image. The main symbols are the sun, the workers, and the ocean.The first image to catch my eye was the big ship in the in the ocean. Its detailed sails and size drew my attention. It seems to be leaving as in sailing away. It kind of reminds me of how Icarus flew away from his father. Had I not seen the ship, I would have never spotted Icarus in the ocean. I was searching for Icarus still in the sky, falling possibly. It's like his fall is hidden in the painting and you must search and look around to observe what has already happened or hasn't. The objects of the painting to catch my eye were the workers that were mentioned in the poem. The first one I saw was the ploughman. His bright red shirt caught my attention and the fact that I couldn't see his face clearly bothered me. Though, from the poem, I had a sense of what he was thinking without seeing his facial expression. Also, the sheperd catches my eye. It's funny to me the way he is completely surrounded by sheep even though its part of his job. He is the only one looking into the sky. The way he is looking up is as if he is watching a miracle, or tragedy, or both, occur. The third worker, the fisherman, is at the bottom of the painting, right by the water, where he should be. Even the sheperd's watch dog looks up atamazement at the flying men. They appeared to be gods to the workers, as described in the poem. It seems as if the fisherman is leaning over trying to help Icarus get out of the water and the only one truly in shock by the whole thing is the sheperd. He is still looking into the sky in shock and disbelief with what he just saw. The only worker not seeming to care really is the ploughman. He just wants to get down the hill. Another observation I made while looking at the painting is that the trees on the lower part of the landscape, closer to the ocean are healthier and more lively, with more leaves and color. The trees higher up closer to the ploughman are less lively. They seem to be more naked and older looking. They have less leaves and color and seem to be slouching. I found the sun to be a huge part of the painting. The sun is not portrayed as the way it's seen in real life. In the painting, the sun is enormous. It is not only a star, but it is a large fraction of the sky. It becomes a part of the sky, a major one. Just as it does in the poem. The sun plays a very important role in the poem. The connection I made is that the sun's enormous size and portrayal in the painting corresponds to its major role in the demise of Icarus in ovid's poem. Afterall, the sun is the reason Icarus feel into the ocean. The wax on his wings melted fromt he sun's heat. The painter recinginzed the importance of the sun and displayed it in the painting. An opinion of mine on the painting is that Brueghel did a wonderful job of capturing the beuaty of Greece. Crete is a beautiful place and I can't imagine why Daedulus would want to leave, nevermind fly away. Another observation about the sun is that it seems to be lighting a large portion of the beautiful sea and the workers and island. However, the side of the ocean that is not bright because of the sun but rather in the shade, is where Icarus fell into the ocean. The water is dark and gloomy. This gives the idea that those who disobey the gods and defy the laws of nature are to fall to a miserable fate. What happened to Icarus not only affected him, but also his father, who I believe was really the one who paid for his disobedience through the death of his young son. Irony is shining as brightly as the sun is in this situation because the sun is such a beautiful yet destructive thing. Icarus was captivated by the sun, which inturn, caused his tragic death. The title of the painting truly connects with the poem because the painting itself represents the climax of the poem. In the poem, Icarus falls because he is intrigued by the sun and goes to close to it which causes his wax to melt and leads to him falling into the ocean adn dying. Since the painting is called Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, its gives the reader a visual of exactly what happened. It shows how strong the sun actually was to be able to melt the wax of the wings. It shows how high up Icarus was and the way he fell and landed into the ocean. The poem is described in great detail artistically through a paintbrush instead of with words. All the words written in the poem are represented with images in the painting. Overall, this painting is extremely captivating and a very beautiful thing to take time to look at. The colors are wonderfully used and the details are extremely accurate in relation to the poem. The most important images are the sun, the ocean, and the workers. They are important because they connect with the poem and they all play major roles in the events of the poem. After reading the poem "The Story of Daedulus and Icarus", the reader might look at the painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus to understand better exactly what happened. Visualization always helps.

In the Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Bruegel, it focuses on the myth of Icarus when he flies too high into the sky, melting his wax wings, and falls into the seas where he ends up dying. The whole story is compacted into this one oil painting and there is a lot going on with the people and the civilization as well as the dark and the lights Bruegel uses to depict the story. The first thing I noticed would have to be the setting sun. The sun is small compared to everything, but there is still this strong vibrant glare coming from it that’s visible only in the middle of the painting which separates the two dark sides on the left and right. The brightest part would have to be the sky. There’s this huge spot of yellow that then gets reflected onto the vast sea which covers 1/3 of the entire painting. The sea appears to be warm and friendly. Boats and ships are sailing on this beautiful day with no problem. The white mountains appear peaceful and serene. Even the island and the civilization look calm when there are usually conflicts and pollution in cities. There’s also this bird flying up in the air on top of the civilization. When following the sun, it led me to the man in red. The land he is standing on catches the sun’s brightness, making it more yellow than green like grass should be. The man looks like he’s working really hard. His left hand holds onto a whip while his right holds onto a plowing instrument attached to a fine brown horse that supplies the power to cut and lift the land. He is dressed in red under a grayish-blue dress with brown stockings and black shoes. The color red is considered a warm color. It works well with the yellows and the oranges. However, he is significantly bright red which contrast with the blue and green and the ploughman is also the largest figure on the painting so it separates him from everything else. The land he is standing on is also elevated from the sea so I pay more attention to him since the perspective of the painting is one who is looking down.Behind the ploughman is this other man wearing a solid blue shirt and black pants while resting his weight upon his long crook. He’s also a working man. Indicated by the herd of sheep surround him and the brown coated dog beside him, he is probably the shepherd of the myth. Even though he comes before the ploughman when following the path of the sun, the ploughman’s red shirt made him more significant than the passive blue that the shepherd has on and blue also blends in with the bluish green ocean. Both the ploughman and the shepherd are facing the left side. The ploughman works his way to the left as the horse drags him along, leading to this dark area of already plowed land. The darkness extends the depth of the area. The shepherd is just gazing into the sky like he’s pondering. They’re both facing the left, but there really isn’t anything interesting happening there. Usually faces provide direction to something significant, but in this painting it’s misleading instead. The two workers are so busy with their job that they are unaware there is someone drowning in the sea on the right. There is a pair of legs sticking out from the water, but his legs are so small compared to the ploughman that it’s almost unnoticeable. I wasn’t even able to notice Icarus until I saw the fisherman dressed in white located on the bottom right of the painting. Even the fisherman did not notice Icarus’s existence when he fell, making a big splash in the sea and causing the water to ripple. No one seems to care or pay attention to Icarus. The large ship close by was sailing away as well, indicated by the direction of the wind blowing on the ship’s sail. The color of the water also changes in the part where Icarus drowned. There is a clear difference that the colors are darker. Breugel uses shades of dark blue and dark green which eventually isolates into black as oppose to the bright blue and green in the middle of the sea. It’s so dark that it doesn’t even look like a part of the sea when you look at the painting in a smaller view. The trees on the bottom right appear mossy and dead unlike the trees on the left. The ones on the left are full grown, lively, and nicely structured with a perfect tone of green. You can see every twig and branch, but the tree on the right looks like a complete mess. The title of the painting explains the importance of both landscape and Icarus in the painting. However, landscape is the dominant focus because Breugel calls it “ landscape ‘with’ the Fall of Icarus.” Icarus is nothing but a small detail in the bigger picture.Many time people tend to belabor at the moment too much that they miss the big picture. There is so much going on in the painting focusing on landscape that Icarus is lost within the picture. The bright colors of the sun in contrast to the darks sea on the right, demands focus and Icarus who is in the darker side is hidden. Even the ploughman, shepherd, and fisherman are so busy with their work whether it is on the land or sea, takes no notice of Icarus as their heads are turned in the opposite way or is facing down. Icarus could have lived if he listened to his father, but he disregarded his words and flew too high. Thus led him to his downfall.Overall, the painting was captivating. It’s such a busy piece of art, but it symbolizes so much and tells so much about Icarus. He was the main character, but his ignorance was what left him to his death. If he had listened to his father, he wouldn’t of fell and could have still been living if he had lived a balanced life like the men who are now glowing in the painting.

As I look at Pieter Bruegel’s Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, my eye first travels to the lower left half of the painting. The vibrant red the plow worker is wearing stands out most to me in the painting. I love Breugel’s use of the dull colors in the foreground to somewhat represent human work life as oppose to the bright yellow/gold colors the Gods represent in the background. Also how the worker has plowed somewhat a maze in the hills which to me also represents human life because as we grow we work our way from one maze of life to another, slowly looking for the right way out to proceed to the next. The way the horse is pulling along the woker down the hills too, it looks as if they are floating on the canvas. I cannot be sure but it looks as if there is a helmet on the workers hat which could mean when life gets tough wear a helmet.

Right above the plow worker I also see the sheep herder looking up at the sky. I love the expression on his face, he is so captivated by the light around him and also the position Bruegel paints him in. Also the darker sheep or maybe it’s a dog sitting next to him. I love the colors he uses. The sheep all have a different look whether its shape or size. I love the detail of the trees also, those leaves are amazing. Off to the right of the photo the trees look as if they are lighting which could possible be from the gods because of the story.

At the right bottom of the photo I notice the fisherman near the ocean. It looks as if he is falling into the ocean to catch his fish. The thing in the water may be a fish but it looks like a human too, perhaps it could be Icarus. I love how Bruegel paints the waves in on the ocean. The detail is perfect. I also notice the ship above that slightly. The only thing that concerns me if the size of the sail on the ship; It looks a lot bigger then the ship itself which would not be correctly which means perhaps Bruegel didn’t use proportion correctly as todays artist is unheard of but back then maybe it was correct. I love the waves up against the boat as well.

Towards the upper left of the paiting there are many houses which means this was taken place in the city. I love how the mountains are huge in the painting. Also how the sunlight begins to hit everything making it stand out even more then usual. I think Bruegel used the colors he did for the light because it represents the light of the gods and how it effects everything because back then many greeks looked up to the gods and their light and power.

The only thing I am unsure of is where exactly the “Fall of Icarus” is. There is no Icarus falling out of the sky on his melted wax wings and where is his father? Perhaps Bruegel did not include them in the painting because he did not want a person to look at just Icarus falling from the sky. Maybe he wanted the observer to look at everything around the story that they may have missed while reading the tale. I know personally I might have just took a good look at Icarus and then forgot about the work instead of looking at everything around the photo like I am now.

I like the title of the painting as well. I love it mostly because it’s the honest truth of the painting. It is a landscape and oh yeah its from the greek legend, The Fall of Icarus. Someone could just walk by the art and think oh yes its just another ocean with the sunlight however it means so much more when the person looking at the art work knows the entire story. I think Bruegel chose to use the title, “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” because the painting is not all about the fall of Icarus, its about the landscape behind the story. Its about the people working the landscape, preserving the landscape, giving life to the landscape. I think the title is also ironic as well because its not exactly a landscape type drawing because of all the other details included in the art work. Usually landscapes include detailed trees and grasses and flowers outlining the background. The ocean with rocks and a tree would not be called a landscape. However it goes back again to Breugel not using correct proportion, as an artist in a way you can make up anything as you go, that’s what makes a memorable artist, that’s what stands out most in my mind about Bruegel.

I think overall Bruegel tried to come across as an individualistic artist. One that can be indescribable yet we can write almost 1000 words to describe it. I feel the overall emotion I get from this painting is irony and symbolic which goes along with Ovid’s story. I think that Breugel wanted the reader of this story to take a step back and just look at the setting of the story and the people that one might have missed while reading it; to notice the 3 workers, tending to the land and as they admire the gods light from above. Also the sky itself and how the Greeks really admired the Gods up above. Also how the earth and gods connect because of the people working to keep life going and moving. I think Breugel wanted to get the biggest point across that maybe Ovid’s story is not completely about the fall of Icarus but the life working around him and his fall., perhaps just showing the overall idea of life. I feel his painting is just completely ironic which works well to connect with the story.

Son NguyenLandscape with the Fall of Icarus This piece of art, “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” painted by Pieter Breugel looks phenomenal with its . The first objects I notice are the islands and boats in the sea, then the sky and the sun that seems to brightens up everything in the painting. There are also three men in the painting. One who is working with his bull, a shepherd and another near the waters. As I look through the whole painting I try to find Icarus drowning. I notice that I have to zoom in real close to see that Icarus is drowning near one of the man that is bending down towards the water on the bottom right hand corner. Icarus’s feathers is scattered all over the place while he is drowning. Now what’s strange is that his legs are the ones that stick out, so he must have fell straight into the water. It’s strange because no one seems to notice Icarus at all. The man near the water, doesn’t do anything but bends towards the water and seems to just try to reach into the water with his right arm. The whole painting seems out of place and Icarus is unnoticed by everything in the painting. Now the setting of the painting seems to be ironic because it seems to be a bright sunny day but someone is drowning to their death. The horizon shows that the sun is either rising or setting. I can see that Breugel uses a bright yellow and orange color for the sun. As the sun is either rising or setting, this raises a question for the clouds. Are the clouds rolling in or out for the sun? Also, even though the mountains along the side of the painting seems to isolate everything, the clouds are either making the mountains dark or the sun is making them bright. I also notice that Icarus is drowning in the dark waters. Though, when the water seems dark, isn’t it shallow waters. I believe that maybe if Icarus could turn into an upright position he might have been able to survive. Although the setting is a mystery, what makes the painting a mystery is the islands, boats, and even trees. There seems to be two islands; one that has a dungeon or castle above and another that is pretty much plain. The castle or dungeon has a dark black entrance, I wonder why there would be a castle or dungeon built on an island. There is also another island that seems to have a village that resides on it. Though there are no one that is drawn onto the boats and the big city, it seems as if it was just one huge sea port trade. By counting the boats there are at least seven boats in the waters just sailing around. I think the painter is just sitting from one village’s point of view and notices the fall of Icarus. Most likely there is another village from where the painter is painting from. There are workers and herders. In total there are only three men. One who is what seems to be remaking the road with his bull. The shepherd brings a great mystery. The shepherd looks up to the sky, not paying attention to the sheeps at all. Why does he look up to the sky, the only person that will know is him and the painter I guess. The title “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus,” means that this whole painting wasn’t just focused on the falling of Icarus. It is also about the landscape and the whole view the painter had during the time he was painting. I believe that maybe Icarus fell after he began painting. Then again, if the painter notices that an “angel” has fallen out of the sky why does he not do a thing to help the poor Icarus from drowning. The landscape means the mountain side, setting of the scene, which position the sun is beaming from and the environment of the whole scene at the time. What adds to the mysticality is that an angel has fallen out of the sky and into the waters but no one notices him drowning, not even the man who is closest to him. I believe the painting was drawn from a location far awat from the big city and was started before Icarus fell from the heavenly sky. I still can’t believe how Icarus is unnoticable to almost everything. It was also very hard to find Icarus as well in the painting though. Before zooming in and giving it a thought that it might be Icarus, I thought it was something different other than a human being who is drowning. In conclusion, the painting’s title emphasizes that it’s the ‘landscape’ with the fall of Icarus. So because the title is this I believe that maybe the painting was worked on before Icarus fell from the sky into the sea. It seems that Icarus was just worked into the painting. I wonder if the painting was almost done before and then Icarus comes falling down, then the painter started painting again to complete that area of the painting. What if Breugel paints Icarus falling down from the sky instead of in the waters. I think that the painter, Breugel came when he saw Icarus in the water, kicking his legs into the air trying to get his head above water but his wings probably weighed him down. As a result, he ended up painting all of that instead.

The beautifully oil based painting titled “ Landscape with the Fall of Icarus”, was done by the well know artist, Pieter Bruegel in the 14th century. This elaborate exquisite piece says quite a lot. The title is well interpreted through the picture. In this artwork, there is a hardworking young farmer, a wise stronf fisherman, and an old, tired herder. The fisherman is quite hard to see, while the farmer is clearly vibrantly visible. The herder is in fairly visible, but it does take quite some time to find him after the farmer. What seems interesting is that the herder is right smack in the middle of the picture too.

The picture is quite descriptive. The farmer is working with the livestock while the herder is working with the sheep. The fisherman is working with the fish. Fishes happen to be in the water. All three of these people, the fisherman, the herder, and the farmer all are happening to work with nature. The fisherman is working with water. The herder with sheep, and the farmer with livestock, animals. I also noticed the difference between night and day in the picture. Or better put, the contrast between light and dark. Also, I noticed the most clearest part of the picture happens to be on the bottom, with the farmer. While the top, which holds the sky and the sun, is not as descriptive. I also picked up that there are quite a bit of ships. And something very peculiar, legs that could be either a man or women’s leg kicking up from the water.

The legs I believe it to be a man’s. A man perhaps named Icarus. I believe the man kicking his legs are Icarus’ because of the title of the oil based artwork. Only Icarus legs is visible, not his whole actual body. Icarus legs happen to be near a boat. Perhaps the title has two meanings. That Icarus had feel from the sky or perhaps that he could have feel from the humongous ship. I believe Icarus had feel from the sky, however. Because he had flown to close to the sun. The sun takes up quite a bit of the picture. Icarus had fallen from the sky because he challenged his gods and his father wishes. The gods brought Icarus to his death because they did not appreciate him ignoring their rules. The gods happen to be the farmer, the fisherman, and the herder in the picture. The gods also happen to be working hard, what their suppose to be doing while Icarus is having fun or rather trying to escape from the gods. The gods did not like this, so the probably mangled with his faith. They also probably did not like the fact that Icarus’ father, Deadalus, was trying to escape prison and possible maybe even his faith. There is this small, quaint little island in the artwork. I believe it to be the prison which Icarus and his father had lived for some time. The prison is small and takes up most if not all the space the island has to offer. The prison color is a very dark shade of black. Which why I choose to believe that this is the prison. Also, the fact that the prison is stranded in the middle of no where, probably Pieter’s purpose, has quite some evidence. Pieter probably placed the prison there because Icarus and his father could not have escaped. There also happens to be a big rock, blocking boats from coming in. The only way Icarus and his father could have escaped was through the sky. Escaping through prison was not something the gods took lightly. Anybody who challenged the gods us challenging faith. Faith is something the gods give people, like Icarus and his father, and they probably do not like people challenging their orders.

The catchy part about the contrast between light and dark is clearly visible. One side of the picture is vibrant, earthy, warm, and deceptive. While the other side is gloomy, dark, lifeless, and obviously not energized. It’s a interesting concept how Bruegel layout this artwork for his viewers. This may signify a journey through life. When you’re a baby, you experience such warmness, love, and so much attention. But as you grow older, it all changes. There is less love, affection, and guiding in your life. You have to guide through your own life, without the help of your parents. When your grow old, your a costumed to being by yourself, lonely, and such. Which portrays the artwork that Pieter Bruegel finished. I do strongly believe the thesis of the Pieter had done was exactly just that. The colors darkening from one side to another wasn’t just a accident, it was intended. Futhermore, the fact that Pieter used very earthy colors is interesting. He had not used any vibrant colors, like pink, purple, or fuchsia. No bright colors. He just used very plain, dull earthy colors. Like brown, white, blue and such.

The title that Bruegel uses for his artwork“ Landscape with the fall of Icarus” is very relevant to the artwork. The title is able to portray the artwork alone. The word “ Landscape” Bruegel choose to use was the landscape that Icarus had fallen into. It was this landscape, that brought Icarus to his death, it also was where everything had happened. And landscape where a man named Icarus and his father, Deadalus, had decided to challenge the gods and faith. By flying beyond the boundaries where no man should be. They flew high into the sky. Where there punishment was awaiting.

The elaborate artwork Bruegel choose to do was interesting in every aspect. From his placement, his colors, and objects he used, he was able to show the reader to captivate the moment Icarus had betrayed the gods. Pieter vividly detailed everything to even the small waves in the ocean. It is truly a heartwarming piece and gives the viewer an outlook of how life was like in the 1550’s. How much people put faith in their gods back then.

When I first saw this painting, my eyes were immediately drawn to the man with the tunic plowing. As I continued to peruse around the painting I saw the way Brueghel uses brush stokes and colors to project different parts of the picture into the viewers mind. The painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus shows a wide shows a scenic view of the ocean and the coast. In the front, the beach leads up to the ocean, which is the biggest part of the painting. Then in the background the sky and sun is visible with a city in the upper left hand corner. The man in the center of the painting with the red tunic and the grey smock has dark colored hair, and he is largest thing in the painting, he is the focus. His face cannot be seen which could have been done purposely to show the feeling of guilt perhaps. . He is following behind a plow of some sort, his horse is pulling it but his horse is also brown. They are walking down to the coast, there is a path that will lead them there in the ground around them. The horse is also not facing the viewer... The trees that surround the place where they are going are very dank and sparse, and the leaves are green and brown. Brown has shown up in many instances. It is possible that Brueghel uses colors to show emotions or evoke the viewer of the painting to be focused on one thing. Meanwhile if you continue to scan the image. Just below the man, there is smaller version of him except the other man is wearing a blue tunic and grey pants. He uses a stick to support himself. Just like the bigger man, he also has an animal with him, that being his dog. The dog is grey they too are also walking towards the very same trees that the bigger man is walking towards. The man is looking up, perhaps to the sky were Icarus was before he fell. Around the man and his, dog there are sheep that look similar to the shape of clouds, and two darker figures that are similar to the shape of a cow. Perhaps Brueghel put the two dark figures there to be Icarus and his father. All of the animals are grazing right next to the beach.Before the ocean there is a rocky bushy landscape. To the right of the land that juts out into the water there is Icarus drowning because he fell. Above him, there are birds, which could be seagulls or doves because they are white. These white pieces above Icarus could also be his wings. On the beach in the bottom right of the picture, there is a man sitting on the rocks his face is also unable to be viewed and this puts more mystery into this painting. Above this man, there is another bird, which appears to be smiling. There is a ship with white sails, a dark hull, and three masts above the spot where Icarus has a fallen. The ship looks to be very old. It is being carried by the wind, which creates the waves that have formed around it. The water is a deep shade of blue here. To the left of the ship is a wide stretch of light blue water that is much more calmer than the water where Icarus’ legs are jutting out. The sun shines brightly down on the middle of the ocean where there are a few ships that are clearly far off in the distance because they are obviously smaller than the large ship in comparison. On the top right of the painting there are White Mountains that are covered in snow. The rest of the image uses many different tones and accents to show differences and project an almost angelic feeling to the painting. In the ocean on the middle left side appears to be the ruins of a castle or a building maybe a jail. It obviously is old and trashy. It is grey,and made of stones. It has an arch that looks like a door. Again Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, represents what was happening at the time of Icarus’ tragic fall The title shows that the landscape is the biggest focus of the painting because it uses the word with, it looks as if Icarus was just placed after the painter finished. The suggestion that I am implying is that Icarus is not the focus of this painting because Icarus is very small compared to the other figures in the painting. With out looking at this painting in depth, it is very easy to just miss Icarus. Also, the people are going on with their daily routine, and seem to ignore what happened to Icarus and what he did. The two birds in the painting could represent Daedelus his father and Icarus because they were trying to fly before Icarus got too close to the sun and sealed his fate. Ending this long rambling, the artist Pieter Brueghel is showing the fall of Icarus, but is doing so by using different brush strokes and colors. The difference between the dark and light shows the cliché difference between right and wrong. Icarus took a risk when he went against his father’s warning and flew into the sun. I believe that the sun is one of the main focal points in this painting. the larger man in the middle off the painting is important but the sun can symbolize many things because it is like the final justice, it punishes and rewards those who do good and those who do bad. Brueghel did an excellent job by using colors as a moods and focal points to show the important parts of the images in the painting. It shows a certain style that Brueghel uses, the fact the Icarus is a very small part of the painting shows that he was not the focal point of the painting but a mere detail that ties everything together. It was done to make the viewer imagine or create his or her own views on this painting.

The Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, painted by Pieter Bruegel, is focused on the fall of Icarus but makes it very discreetly shown in the painting. The purpose of the picture is not seen until looking the painting over a few times. It was one of the last things that caught my eye. In this picture the first thing that caught my attention was the man in the middle. The man is wearing a gray shirt with a bright red sleeve. His shirt is long and extends to his lower body where it has what looks like ruffles. He's also wearing black pants. He is watching the ground. He is working with a horse. The man and horse appear to be pulling up the grass with a wooden machine. It seems as if they are pulling up all the grass to leave only soil on the ground. It looks like a plow or maybe an old-fashioned lawn mower. The brown horse is pulling this wooden machine and the man is following. There are trees in front of them with dark branches and few leaves. There are branches and bushes behind them. The ground is grassy except where the machine has gone over it.

The next thing that catches my eye is the man surrounded by animals that look like sheep. He is wearing green and has a bundle on his back. He's holding a stick and looking up to the sky. The way he appears to carry himself suggests that he may be tired. There is a black dog sitting next to the man. They are herding the sheep. Most of the sheep are white, but a two are black. They are on a hill and some of the sheep are wandering downhill. The ground where they are working does not appear to have any grass, it is light brown which suggests it is dirt. There are trees around them. On the other side of the trees and at the bottom of the hill there are a few more white sheep. This is near to the water's edge. Also on this side of land there is a man wearing a white shirt and red cap sitting down on the side of the land. He is bending forward and looking down into the water.

On the other side of the water there is a little city. The city is painted in different shades of orange and gray. It juts out into the water. Next to the city are mountainous rocks. The land between the small city and the tall rocks is colored a dark gray. Above the small city the sky is cloudy and gray. There is a ship next to the small city edge. In the water there is a big and dark gray rock with an entrance. Its right in the middle of the water. Behind this place there is vegetation. Its a little island. There are two rocks near this place, one big and one small, that just sit in the middle of the water.

Near this island are some ships. The biggest ship is the farthest from the small island. The ship has huge white sails. It is sailing towards the the city. Next to this ship there are legs in the water. It looks like someone is drowning and kicking their legs. He could have fallen off the ship or form somewhere else. There are waves in the water. Behind this ship the water is darker. The darkness of the sunlight behind the ship suggests that the sun is hidden from this area and something dark may be happening. The other ship is closer to the small city, making it look smaller than the other ship. It also has white sails and is moving towards the small city. Near this small ship there are small sailboats in the water. The water is a light blue and shows that this part of the sea is calm. The middle of the sea is a lighter color and shows that light is beaming onto it. The sun is directly shining on this part of the sea.

As I look out farther into the picture I see that the sky is a yellow with a little orange. This is because the sun is located right in this part of the picture. The small part of land nearest to the sun is a little lighter than the other pieces of land in the picture because it is closer to the sun. As I move towards the right of the picture the sky becomes gray again. In this part it is sitting over some gray mountains. The water is a little darker near the edge of these mountains where the land and sea connects. In the right side of the picture there is also a small piece of land that sticks out. It is near the bigger ship and has trees, bushes, and plants on its land.

There are no women in this picture. The picture is set during the daytime. The waves in the water and the curling of the sails indicate that it is windy out. The gray clouds on both sides of the picture suggest that a storm may be brewing. The main setting of the picture is a harbor. The men in the picture are well-dressed. The city appears to be wealthy because of the clothes the men are wearing and all the ships going into the harbor.

This painting is showing a very subtle example of the falling of Icarus. The legs in the water are the legs of Icarus. The man looking down into the water is Dedalus. If someone had not known the title of the painting he would not be able to come to the conclusion about Icarus. The legs in the water and the man looking down is almost an after thought while looking at this picture. Bruegel paints the scenes of the men working bigger to hide the real meaning of the painting. The eye is attracted to the men in the picture first, making the image of Icarus harder to come across. Trying to fly may have upset the gods because Icarus could not control himself. Bruegel might be trying to show that people that do not try to interfere with the gods will go on living life normally. I think that Pieter Bruegel did a beautiful job with his detailed and calm painting displaying the fall of Icarus.

When I first look at the painting, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, and think about the history of the tale of ‘Daedalus and Icarus’ by Ovid, my eye first catches the island in the middle of the water. From the information I know, it seems to be that this island is the labyrinth in which King Menus used Daedalus to build to hide his son that was half human and half bull. The background of the painting in which this labyrinth is placed is full of bright colors and yet the labyrinth is a looming dark grey in the middle of a busy city and busy bay. The labyrinth, though in the clear light of the water, is set apart towards the corner of the ocean, further away from the city and the cavernous mountains in the background. I also find it interesting that the townspeople described in the tale of Daedalus and Icarus, the fisherman, the shepherd, and a ploughman are all in the painting as well, doing their daily business and very much one of the main focuses of the picture, the ploughman being closest to the viewer. They are all clearly visible where as the mountains and the setting sun in the horizon seems very far off view. The story is depicted easily in this painting, though Daedalus and Icarus themselves are not to be found. There is one object near the fisherman that looks to be a body that may or may not be the fallen Icarus who is trying to swim. The body seems to be struggling, which Icarus would be doing after such a fall with wings strapped to his shoulders. There is only an arm showing through the white waters. The colors near the front where the townspeople are also darker than in the horizon. They are duller and earthier with greens and browns. Even the nearest water is not blue like the water past it, it’s a dark greenish brown shadowed by a tall ship. The city in the background which could be Crete is colored in whites and light grays making the city look holy and perfect, a place to miss such as Daedalus did. The city is also far off in the horizon on the left, near the setting sun and under full clouds. The vast and blue sea separates the sea from the white mountains which loom higher but are unseen because of the clouds. The impression is given though that they are miles high and cavernous. A very yellow and distant sun is the most intriguing part of the painting. It’s a small dot of yellow that gives a bright reflection on the waters and a very big glow to the sky that only reflects in the middle of the painting, only far off. It is to be assumed that this is where Icarus made his fatal mistake of flying too close and melting his wings. Beneath this glow and on the water, is a separate yellow reflection with whites that cause ruffles in the water. This could be the fall of Icarus, though it is very hard to see in detail. The yellow in this part of the water could be the heat exuding from Icarus as he fell from the sky and the white in the front could be his wings, but it is so far off, it’s hard to tell what the mass is. The landscape used in the painting is depicting a moment in time and of action as opposed to a portrait of someone sitting there or posing. There are townspeople going about their work, one looking up to the sky as in the story of “Daedalus and Icarus” and there are ships and boats in the waters most likely trading and going about their own business. The landscape also is one of nature, an important theme in the Ovid’s story. It is not of the city of Crete or even of the labyrinth that ‘held’ Daedalus. Nature, being the gravity against Daedalus and Icarus and nature also as the gods is the theme that eventually fights Daedalus’ arrogance. The nature of the gods is highlighted in the horizon and the nature of gravity, of earth is highlighted in the earth that is in the center of the painting. The front center of the picture, where the townspeople are placed and distinct are also placed on a rock of sorts with dark trees. There are steps on the rock, implying that although it’s a ridge, it’s a common place people go. The land seems to circle the sea in a semi circle where the painter’s view is right in the middle facing the horizon and on the ridge, as if the painter is looking out towards the sky, where Daedalus and Icarus are flying. The city in which this painting depicts seems to be just a part of the world. The painting isn’t entirely focused on the city itself, just the overview of it, using light colors and mountains looming in the clouds. The painting is the story of Icarus, but there is much more beyond in the horizon and more to Ovid’s metamorphosis and Icarus’s fall with a dark looming present and a bright horizon.

The Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Pieter Brugel depicts the myth of Daedalus and his son Icarus. Painted during the Renaissance, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus reflects on the Greek and Roman mythology, which was popular among artists such as Michelangelo and Raphael.At first glance, the painting offers a mastery of the use of light and shading. Because of the sun in the background, most of the painting is brightly lighten. This gives off a feeling of warmth and a new beginning. It gives hope to viewers as a new sunrise to a brand new day.In the background is the sun, which takes a circular shape built of the colors yellow, orange, and surrounded by the blue and green on either side. Between the yellows, oranges, blues, and greens, there are hints of pink to show the reflection of the sunlight. On the left floats a cloud that is a lighter shade of the colors of the sky mixed with white. It takes the shape of a breath of air; the top of the cloud rises. Most of the cloud is shifted to the left.The water is made up of shades of green and blue, but also yellow. The yellow is a reflection of the new sun rising. The round shape of the sun is also shown in the sea. In the sea, there are 3 ships. While one of up close, two of the ships are in the distance. The further away ship has two white sails with wind in being blown towards the west. Next to the larger boat is a sailboat and is in much smaller in size compared to the one next to it. On the right the largest ship has seagulls flying around the place to on look for things in the distance. The wind seems strong and blows the ship towards the sea with the sails looking belly-like. The ship actually has three or four sails, but only two is being used at the moment of the painting. There are two places people can stand to look for land and upcoming ships. The actual ship is brown and most likely made of wood with blocks of pink on the top left and the middle of the ship. At the very top, it has two flags that have a background of white and a circular figure in the center of them.In the center of the painting, there is a man looking up into the sky surrounded by sheep. He stands on a small piece of land like a cliff with dark green branches behind him. The actual branches are thin but the plentiful of leaves. The man holds a wooden stick in which he is leaning on. He dresses in a blue shirt and green pants and boots. He carries something similar to a backpack or a blue sleeping bag that seems curled up. Next to him is a dog that also seems to be looking in front of itself. The dog’s face and feet are white but its body is brownish red. Among the sheep, there are only two black ones. They both look similar and are bent down to eat the grass. The rest of the sheep are white. The piece of land the shepherd is standing on is at the coast of the sea. There is a pointed edge towards the right which sheep still there.Towards the left but still in the center of the sea lie boulders. The rocks seem to make up a castle or building that has a small hole near the bottom which resembles a door. In that island, there are trees and plants on the beaches located behind the castle.Far off into the upper right is a city or island in front of White Mountains. The island has houses or towers near the beaches. Because of the sun, yellow is reflected onto the land in the back of the island. On the right are towering mountains that are sharply painted until a plateau is depicted in the center of them.Towards the front of the painting is a man with his horse who ploughs the land. The man has a black hat, black hair, red long-sleeved shirt with a white vest and something similar to a dress. He wears a white cloth on his thigh and brown tights with darker brown shoes. In his left hand, he holds a whip and is holding onto the plough-machine with the right hand. The “machine” is hooked up the horse that drags it along on the ground. The man and the horse are on elevated land with stairs in the front of the painting. There is a white sack on the stairs with another elevated piece of land on the lower left. There are plants on the left edge of the piece of land. The land the man and the horse are on is green, which could be grass. The ground shows no sign of ploughing down. The horse is headed towards another grassy stairs, which fades in the shaded parts. The steps are smaller and surrounded by the trees. The main tree is tall and forms many branches.In the distance, there is a city next to mountains. The city has a cape but there are buildings located on the left of the land, but the rest of that section is covered in green. The city is curved with many buildings with mountains the background. The buildings have an orange-pink color with bits of blue. A ship is heading towards the cape.On the bottom left, there is a fisherman reaching his hand out into the ocean. He is dressed in white and has orange hair partially covered in a black hat. He sits on the edge of the coast. He seems to be looking downwards. There are kicking feet in front of him with feathers flying. This is probably an image of Icarus falling into the sea. There are waves around him, which signifies movement in the water. It looks like a creature is in the tree looking to the side. It looks like a turtle but could be a bird.The title Landscape with the Fall of Icarus seems to focus mainly on the background rather than Icarus itself. Brugel mentions the landscape first rather than the name Icarus. In the painting, Icarus is only shown in a small part off to the corner. Even the witnesses have larger sizes. The story of Icarus only seems like a last minute addition to the painting rather than the main subject.

Pieter Bruegel’s Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, is an oil painting of Bruegel’s depiction of Icarus’ untimely death. The sea is illuminated by the sun and there are people hard at work, yet oblivious to the fact that Icarus is drowning. The audience, knowing who they are to look for, then tries to find and identify Icarus.

The farmer in the center catches the audience’s eyes almost immediately due to the colors he wears and Bruegel’s placement. The vibrant red shirt contrasts greatly with the blue sea and is placed between the darkest areas of the painting. Upon further inspection of the farmer, the audience will notice the warmness of the farmer’s clothing. The audience knows that the apron he wears is blue and that his pants are white but they can see the strong yellow highlights that Bruegel has skillfully blended in. Even in the farmer’s dark hair, the yellow highlights are still apparent. Bruegel establishes the fact that the farmer is hard at work and plowing the field with his horse.

Because of the direction of the highlights, the audience moves toward the sun and the sea. The sun’s warm yellow colors slowly fade into color shades of purple, blue, and green as the sky slowly become mountains. However, trace amounts of yellow can be seen blended in even the darkness. The conversion from sky to mountain is nearly nonexistent and gives emphasis on the sun’s light. The sea, though blue, shares the same warmness as the sky with yellow green blended with the blue. Darker parts of the sea appear to be mixed with earth tones for the reflections but the general warmness can be easily seen. In the midst of the sea are several small ships which seemingly blend into the sea to the north and a natural stone fortress to the west.

The audience then searches for the lightest area on the painting which is the city and the rocks to the left. The city is painted with shades of faint white, various values of orange, and a light shade red purple. Through the delicate strokes Bruegel uses, he defines the setting, a calm sea near a Greek city, shown through the architecture. It is then that the audience notices the suggestion of a mountain in the background due to the shadow on the mountain’s sides which gives them awareness of the other mountains. The light yellow rocks appear faded because of Bruegel’s skillful blending. The rocks in the back are pushed back with the use of duller earth ones alongside the yellow.

However, the rocks are obscured by the dark trees that branch upward. Unlike the rest of the painting, there is a significant lack of the warm tones that are used except for the highlights on the edges of the leaves and the trunks. Instead, there seems to be dark colors created through the use cool colors and dulled out with complementary colors. Bruegel paints the trees into the midground through application of strong contrast with the background and the detailed, tight painting of the leaves.

From there, the audience then follows the path earlier plowed by the farmer. The audience, familiar with the farmer and his actions, then searches for objects that are unseen. They then see the shepherd in a faded blue shirt and brown overalls staring aimlessly into the sky alongside his dog and his flock of sheep, two of which appear to be a dark brown. As the audience views the flock, their eyes follow the faded yellow sheep toward the edge of the earth, where they then see ripples in the dark sea.

It is then that the audience finally realizes that the ripples are caused by the flailing legs of unfortunate Icarus who was earlier obscured by the large ship that creates a separation between the warm yellow sea and the cool blackened sea. The ship itself is painted in a tighter manner in comparison to the other ships and is much larger so its role as a boundary between the color and the light fits perfectly. By denying light to Icarus’ legs, the audience is less likely to notice his presence. Underneath Icarus in white garments is a red haired fisherman, who although is so near him, is busy catching fish and does not notice Icarus. The audience realizes at this point that the three laborers in the painting do not notice that Icarus is drowning.

Landscape with the Fall of Icarus reflects on one of the more important themes in Ovid’s Metaporhoses. In Daedalus’ flight for freedom, he forsakes the safety of his own son and flies on alone. As a result, Icarus rapidly falls from the sky, not only ignored by his own father, but by the workers as well. By having the audience search the entire painting for Icarus through the subtle and skillful use of various artistic techniques, Bruegel helps them realize how difficult it is to locate Icarus and how humiliating a death he suffers because he strays from his father’s path. When the audience first looks at the painting, it’s as if it isn’t about Icarus at all. Without Icarus, the painting is pleasant and would be a brilliant piece on its own because of that pleasantness. However, with Icarus, Bruegul gives the calmness a morbid twist. The sun that gives the landscape a calm feeling sense is also the same sun that melts Icarus’ wings. It is as if Bruegel is trying to convey to the audience that people are more concerned with their daily routines and will be slow to care for those who are responsible.

Bruegel could have easily painted a scene in which Icarus is rapidly falling with the bystanders looking in disgust as there is nothing in Ovid’s story that tells him otherwise. Instead, by making Icarus drown unnoticed, the audience sees the consequences of both the foolish actions of Icarus and Daedalus. Ultimately, the purpose of Bruegel’s painting is to remind the audience of the moral within the myth of young Icarus, to fly a middle course and to encourage others to do so.

When I first looked at the painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Bruegel, I focused on the background first. It contains only a large sky which has the sun in the middle and gloomy clouds at both the right and left side. Then, I moved my sight a little forward for the middle ground. It is basically composed of a large and blue sea with a few sail boats and islands. Finally, my eyes hit on the ploughman who is located in the foreground, and who is with his horse. Next to the ploughman, there is a shepherd. He is surrounded by his sheep, and he seems curios that he is looking up at the sky. Lastly, to the right of the foreground, there is a fisherman sitting at the bottom shore. And he seems to be surprised by the one who is in front of him and struggling in the water. For describing the painting in part, I first noticed the background - yellow sky. It is the brightest and largest object, and it has a simple shape of oval. And, I believe the yellow appeared on the sky comes from the sun. Then immediately, my eyes moved to the front, and set on the ploughman. It was his red undershirt that has caught my attention, because the shirt is in the foreground, and the color red is the sharpest color in the painting. However, I frowned a little when I was trying to figure out what is happening to his legs. It seemed to me that he has crooked legs. The shadows are almost as dark as his shoes, and they are as narrow as his legs. Afterward, my eyes moved up to his dress and the stairs almost the same time. I saw that the strips folded on her dress look similar to the stairs. They both have a contrast between shadow and light. Following the path of the stairs, I saw the horse and the trees. It’s the stair that led me in seeing them, because they are located on one of the ending sides in the painting, and they have cool colors-dark green and brown, instead of warm. Continuing to look at the painting, I discovered a shepherd who’s standing at the bottom shore. Even though he has a number of sheep around him requiring him to take care, he gives up his job to observe what is happening in the sky. The shepherd crossed his legs, looking up the darkened clouds, thinking if anything will happen, and wondering if that would do any harm to him. Moving my sight toward the right, I saw the brown sail boat. Its canvas sail caught my attention that it is white, the color which is contrary to the color of the boat. Suddenly, I became surprised to see a pair of legs which is struggling for help in the water. And quickly, my eyes set on to a fisherman who’s dressed in white. He is sitting on the bottom shore. Even though he is fishing, I believe he still sees the one who is struggling in front of him. In the middle ground, I saw a few sail boats, with difference sizes – the further to smaller, the closer the larger; then I see islands with three kinds of color: yellow, white, and gray; and at last cities which is located all the way to the left in the middle ground. The sail boats seem blurry and the islands seem to be bleak. However, the cities seem to be lively and prosperous, even though it seems a little blurry. Focusing on the title now, “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus”, I can tell that the painting is painted in the purpose to represent “the story of Daedalus and Icarus”. The painter, Bruegel wishes to express the irony of the story and warn those who are arrogant would fail. I then tended to look for things that would match with what happened in “The Story of Daedalus and Icarus”. In the story, Daedalus has to watch over the monster Minotaur. He uses his power to have Minotaur stay in an island, and I believe it is the white one located on the right side of the middle ground. And then in the story, while the son of Daedalus, Icarus learns flying lessons by flying with his father, people on the ground all look up and worship them amazingly. In the painting, the shepherd should be one of those people described in the poem, because he is looking up to the sky and he seems very curious. As the flying lessons progresses, Icarus becomes more and more proud, he secretly leaves his father and goes on flying by himself. He thinks that he can create a path for himself; he even believes he can be the highest. Icarus flies higher and higher, he comes closer and closer to the sun. The sun, however, shines brightly and was melting Icarus’ wing. In the painting, the sun is shiny as well, which I believe it is the sun that melted Icarus’ wing. Within a little while, the arrogant Icarus is falling from the highest point of the sky to the lowest – into the sea. For the best of my assumption, the feet are struggling in the water of the painting are Icarus’ after his falling. Moreover, after he falls, no one really takes account of his existence; the ploughman, shepherd and the fisherman still perform their daily roles as necessary. At the end, Icarus dies ridiculously, he is too young for death, he has only taken pride for once, and he has only flied once which is his first and last time ever. The author of “the story of Daedalus and Icarus”, Ovid, severely tells the punishments of taking pride here, as well as Bruegel tells the punishments through painting. In fact, both Bruegel and Ovid mean to tell us that greedy and pride together would arrogate things we possess, such as honor, health, and even life, while they also wish to warn us, the youth no to commit the same mistake as Icarus did.

In the Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, what first caught my eyes when I looked at it was this little sort of island in the middle of the ocean surrounded by a bigger island. It looks like it has a castle built on top of it and it has a door in front. The castle has a sort of rock shape and its color is gray like the color of a rock. There seems to be some sort of trees in the back of this castle and it makes me wonder who could live in there. The ships on the ocean seem to be departing, leaving behind this peculiar island. There is also a pair of human legs coming out from the water, which what I assume are Icarus� legs, for he fell into the ocean and there are also some feather that seems to have fallen from a bird, which I take to be Icarus� feather. The feathers are falling down into the water and Icarus� legs seem to be struggling to not let go into the water. There is a man getting into the water trying to help Icarus. I guess this was Icarus� father. He seems to be trying to reach into the water, but he is far away from Icarus. Close to the man trying to reach Icarus, there is a turtle that seems to be getting inside the water to try to help Icarus too. The water of the ocean has a clear color when is closer to the sun light, and darker with some shadows where it is away from the sun light. Everything on the ocean seems to be very calm except for these legs that are trying not to drown into the water. The sun, even though it looks like a little circle coming out from the earth, its rays and light, make the effect of this huge circle that covers good part of the sky. The sun seems to be the one in charge of the sky. Its lights are very bright and its colors are yellow and a very light orange. Everything on the ocean makes a shadow because of the bright and strong lights of the sun. When you look to the right side of the island, it gives you the illusion of seeing mountains covered by some white color that looks like snow. It looks like mountains covered by snow, mountains that are in a high place where all you could see is ice. These mountains are closer to the sun that anything else in the paint. To the left side of the island, close to the sun, but not as close as the mountains on the right side of the paint, there looks like there are some buildings built right next to the water on the very shore. There are some mountains there too, but because of the color of the buildings and the color of the ground there, it looks like it is a desert. The colors it has give it the look sort of city, which even though seems a busy part of the island; it kind of lacks something that would give it a more cheerful look. On the front part of the paint, there is a woman cultivating the land. She is wearing a kind of green dress, with a red long sleeve shirt inside the dress. Her legs have a dark color, and her hair has a dark color too. She is looking down to the ground, which gives the impression that she is sad, and she is grabbing the tool that she is using to cultivate the earth, which (the tool) is being dragged by a dark brown color horse. On this part of the island, that paint has richer colors to it. Everything seems to be concentrated on this part of the island. The vegetation on this side looks healthy and full of life. The trees� leaves have a dark green color, which makes them look alive. Next to the woman who is cultivating the ground, there is a man, who is holding a long wood stick, with which he seems to be supporting from. He has a blue long sleeve shirt and he seems to be wearing boots. Next to the man, there is a brown color dog. The dog�s body is brown, but its head is white. Both the man and the dog are string up into the empty sky. Around them, there are a lot of sheep, which obviously let me know that the man there is a shepherd. The sheep seem to be going around perhaps looking for something to eat. It really caught my attention that the paint seems to be divided into three different sessions where each one is painting with a different color. Even though they all have different colors, the focus is on the one where the people are working and where it is farther away from the sun. It really made me think how all these there different views of land could possibly be together on a paint, which actually looks very distant from reality. As a whole, the paint takes place on an island, where the ocean looks beautiful and colorful. Everything seems very quiet and it looks like everyone it just doing their thing, not paying attention to what the others are doing or about what is happing around them. Up in the sky, the sun takes most of space, lighting the parts of the sky surrounding it, and darkening the parts of the sky away from it. Even though the sky should not be as bright in the parts away from the sun, it should not be as dark as they are painted, which gives the impression that the sun is the center of attention and it is the one who sort of commands the whole island. The sun seems to be the one leading the ships that look to be departing from the island, but it also looks like the sun is either coming out or fading away.

This painting is a wide shot of the sea. The sky is dark in some spaces and right in the middle there is some sunlight, which is reflected onto the water. On the left side of the image there is an island, which has many houses. On the right side there is what looks like mountains. There are ships all along the water. In the foreground there is a man with a horse plowing, a fisherman on the lower right side and in the middle of the foreground a man herding sheep. The man herding sheep is looking up to the sky and behind him on the right side there is Icarus in the water and the feathers are on the surface and all around him. The first thing my eyes go to as I open the picture is the man in the middle of the foreground looking up into the sky. My eyes go there first because he is right in the middle of the picture and he is the only one looking up into the sky while everyone else seems to be working. Also it seem as if he has seem something amazing because he looks so fascinated as he’s looking to the sky. The next time I open up the picture my eyes go straight to the sun in the background. The sun in this painting is awkwardly positioned, it looks like a sunset but the sky is still full of light. The sun is so small in the sky but there is this big brightness above it and then there is a little reflection on the water. The next thing that catches my eye is the fact that some of the sheep on the land are brown, there are around twenty white sheep and three brown sheep. Also I noticed that the front island is darker or gloomier and the other islands further away are more lit. There is like a cave thingy in the middle of the ocean, when I first saw it, it looked like a prison or somewhere that people would stop before going to the exile island. On ship the sails is blowing in the wind and it looks very exaggerated. What seems to be a bird is like flying over the lighter island it is very small and noticeable because it is black and the island is white and light. There is another bird just like that in the foreground need the darker island, which is less noticeable. The area where Icuras’ leg are daggling out of the water is darker then any part of the painting. At the right side it looks like the fisherman is either fishing or pointing to something in the water. The man that is plowing has no face, all that you can see is his hat and than all you see is pinkish red on the side of the blop that he has. He is also bigger than anyone else in this painting, he is wearing a bright red shirt which makes you eyes go to him just because its red. Usually red signifies passion or love or death but him wearing red seems like it saying he’s the opposite because he doesn’t look like he has passion or even wants to be there. In the middle of the painting the ship looks like its fading away to the point that you kind of have to look really close to see it. There are two rocks in the middle of the sea, its so random because its just there and its really above the water. In the sky there is this weird figure that is white, while the sky is blue. The mountains shaped are all rigid and edgy. These mountains look somewhat three dimensional and pop out at me. On the other island on the right side it looks like there is like smoke on it. The island with all the house is blurry and all that is really noticeable is the lighter colors used and the house which looks like its along the water. Near the bigger ship the water is darker color and around the other islands is a light bluish green color and where the sun is hitting the water it turns very light almost transparent. It look that the sea just goes on and on and on and then finally it looks like it tips over the edge of the painting. The title is Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, this title is perfect for this painting because it’s showing what happened when Icurus fell into the water and what people were doing at this time and what the area looked like. The painting shows the three men who were referring to Icarus and Daedelus as Gods doing the work that God has given them. It’s very hard to see Icarus and I had to look very closely to the painting. Where Icarus is in the water it is really dark and the rest of the water is lighter, and darkness usually symbolizes death so the darkness may represent Icarus’ death. I think that Bruegel uses this contrast between light and dark to show that Icarus did the wrong thing that’s why he is in the dark but Icarus doing these wrong things shed a light over the other people and the other islands and making them have knowledge about the difference of wrong and right. Also I think that as a over all picture is it great but we just have to really focus on the little details that we are giving because the picture may be beautiful but it’s the little details that make it great. Also I think that was a lesson going with the story of Icarus, that the bigger idea may be good but you have to finalize all the little details to ensure that it is actually going to be great. Overall I think this painting was also supposed to teach us a lesson in that at any given moment something could happen so in order to not reach that point we have to think about the things we do and remember that there are consequences for the things we do.

When I first took a glimpse at the painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Bruegel, I noticed the little worker wearing the red shirt. The red shirt was the most vibrant color throughout the whole painting. I also noticed the very bright sun in the background. I believe it is nice the way Bruegel made the sky bright and then where all the people are located dark, since it shows how the sun acts as a god while everyone else is just humans. Afterwards, I noticed the sheep with the peasant working and looking up at the sky since it was near the worker in red. In addition, I noticed the sheep that is the close to our view rather than all the other ships and then realizing that the feet in the ocean are Icarus. Just like how Bruegel personifies the sun as a god, he makes the ship block the sunlight from where Icarus has fallen. Next, I noticed the fisherman near Icarus at the bottom right of the picture. After seeing all of the big and bright objects of the picture, I realized the ships in the background along with the two mountains, one located to the left of the picture and one located to the right. In addition, I noticed the town in the back faded out from the picture so that we can’t really notice it. There is also a cave in the middle of the ocean. I have also noticed the colors that Bruegel uses with all his objects and people. For example, the sky is black, pink, and yellowish giving it a dull background that is kind of in a condition of darkness roaming over. Then there is the sun which is huge with a yellow and orange mix of color to it. I then noticed there were a few sheeps that were black instead of white. In addition, I noticed that the darkest part of the whole picture is the bottom right part where Icarus’ body lies. The ocean where Icarus landed at is pure black expressing his death and since no sunlight is there, the work of the gods. After noticing the colors of the picture, I noticed the way the workers were dressed. For example, the mill worker has a grow coat with the vibrant reddish orange shirt that was the first thing I noticed in the painting. In addition to the hat to block the sun with. The mill worker has a horse pulling the cart he is holding to lay fertilizer on the ground. The mill worker is also dressed up old fashion just like the time period was. Moreover, the sheep worker is also dressed in an old fashion manner. He is wearing a blue shirt and holding a stick while looking at the sky. The next worker is the fisherman who is fishing right near Icarus’ corpse. I believe he is fishing near the corpse because he is probably curious to what happen to the man who he assumed was a god who just fell down to the water and died. He is wearing a fisherman hat with a white coat. After looking at the whole picture I decided to try to understand why Bruegel used the colors he did, put the people and objects where he did, and fade all the colors that he did. I believe that the black ocean on the right bottom of the map signifies the death of Icarus and that is why the ship is there. The ship is used to block the sunlight which is personified as a god from Icarus’s corpse. Next I believe the cave in the middle of the ocean signifies how Icarus and his father were trapped onto the island and couldn’t get out so they flied out of it. Then the sky being black, purple, and yellow is to signify a depressing mood to what has happened which is Icarus’ death. In addition to the whole painting being dark and gloomy where only the sun is strong and vibrant since it signifies a god. I also noticed how the top of the picture is very bright due to the sun and the bottom of the picture is dark and gloomy. I believe it represents how Icarus should have stayed in the middle and not fly too high or too low, because of how the sun would melt his wings and the bottom the oceans would get him, so that is why the middle of the map seems the perfect blend of color which is not too bright and not too dark but in the middle. I then noticed a turtle where Icarus’ dead body lies. I believe that signifies new life and a rebirth since there is a living animal swimming around Icarus’ dead body. After all the backgrounds and colors that I tried to figure out why Bruegel did it, I thought about the significance of the workers. The workers are in the painting to show the natural side of the picture as in the human side. There is a god side to the picture which is the nature part as in the sun. Then, there is the human part where they look up to the sky to be astonished by the gods and since they are all working to get their food and nutrients from nature, I believe it is significant. Since the human workers are doing their jobs to get their source of nutrient and food from nature, it shows how powerful nature is and how powerful the god is. For example, how easily the sun melted Icarus’ wings to cause him to fall into the ocean and die. The ocean is also another god since it is nature. The sun melted Icarus’ wings to cause him to not be able to fly anymore however the ocean is the element of nature that kills him. Overall, Bruegel uses a very unique style of color, texture, people, and objects to subject the viewer to many components of the picture such as the vibrant red shirt, or the bright sun.

When I first witnessed the picture of The Fall of Icarus by Bruegel, there was a quite unique concept about the color structure he used. In the background there is an aluminous sky shaded by the yellow shadow that represents a form of purity and well-being. The rest of the background is hard to make out but the clouds provide a contradictory image of the eternally lit flame of the sun. This may be foreshadowed as the danger that may come from the death of Icarus and the clouds are the warning sign of dangerous times. Next, the richness of the Mediterranean Sea is pictured oh so elegantly by Brueghel. The radiance of the sea is perfected in the blue shadings. The color really captures the importance of the sea as if it were human and the painting is fairly adequate when measuring the prolific empire of mythology and how we interpret it. The image of the boat is amazing in the sense of how steady it is against the calm blue sea. The Island is portrayed as a prison in the myth, but seems filled with people who seem to enjoy the time they have. The title of the painting, The Fall of Icarus, obviously represents the tragedy that will be faced by the title character. The painting seems to pick up just after the incident has occurred judging from the fallen angel wings in the water trying obsessively to swim back up to the heavens. The painting also focuses on the ignorance of the peasants or farm workers or the workers with the Earth, The man in red who plows on by while he had just admired the significance of the fly. The Shepard who is turned away from the fall and sees nothing of the incident could signify the accepting of the Gods while Icarus has defied these same gods by flying higher than he thought he could and making the workers believe as if he were indeed a God. As Icarus falls into the water, his father Deadalus tries to reach into the water and save his son. He fails and the painter does not offer the sort of emotions that one, Deadalus, should express by the death of his son. When glanced at a second time I realized that the first image that strikes me as odd is the effect the painting has on the impact of the plowman. He takes up a large portion of the left side of the picture. He is also one of the only characters to be clearly displayed with symbolic amounts of color. The red suit personifying rage and evil stemming from in this case the entrapment on the island that is evident through the eternal suffering Deadalus must now submit himself to. The shadows are clustered in the region in which Icarus drowns is blackened and darkened to emphasize the effect of the death and the darkness that is soon to follow the orders of Gods and their wrath. While on the other side of the equation there is a light that is illuminating on the clear water, however some may see this as a clear path to the Promised Land and that is something nobody on the island will ever be able to achieve further symbolizes the imagery of the Sun as a sign of rage and passion that is burning continuously as the events continue to unfold. The next thing I notice is the select amount of sheep that are different colors who still roam with the other normally colored sheep. I can make an assumption about the fact that they are “black sheep” which in this case could be used to apply Deadalus and Icarus as out of place in this prison island of Crete. They are different because of their fight with nature. The herdsman and Shepard and plowman are all one with nature and they work with the gods something that both Deadalus and Icarus fight by inventing things and defying the laws of gravity and in doing so anger the Gods so much as to do something as inhumane as grossly murder the son of Deadalus. The painting also show the deep and unfortunate aspects of the universe are and how all beings on the earth are trapped their. In a deep thought this one island is the rest of the universe. The workers and prisoners are trapped their for as long as I can see and the end is symbolized by the death or fall of Icarus and just how badly one can come to an end as quickly as it is put on earth. The color green is used in the mix of the ocean which is ironic of the reason Deadalus is on the island in the first place. He murders his own nephew because of his jealousy, or to be more fitting, or envy which is commonly applied to the color green to represent something that is a sin under the bible’s definition of the terms. Also, the green is being applied to the pastures that are being plowed indicating the turn of spring and the trees of which are not fully grown are still brown. This was possibly to emphasize the immaturity of youth and how when youth is not fully experienced it can wither easily in the passing time. Icarus learned this lesson based on his ego trip that angered an elder God(s), it was Icarus’ dream to be just like a God by flying so high while intellectually being a lesser being, a child. It is important to see the pictures of what it is that we read. In this case a myth about youth or about man facing off against nature, by looking at the picture we can gather an even larger mental picture of the actions at hand. We learn about emotions, we learn about patterns and how they are represented by different colors and objects that are symbolic of the people involved in the picture or painting. What else do we learn from a picture? Do we really see everything on first glance? Is there more than meets the eye?

FaedhraW6In the landscape with the fall of Icarus, Bruegel Pieter depicts the Greek story of the downfall of Icarus whom death result from his stubbornness, his will power by ignoring the advice offered by his old man. With the use of color and vivid character, Bruegel captures in a creative way the lesson in “The story of Daedalus and Icarus” As I first glance to that masterpiece, my eyes first laid on the old construction made with bricks situated in the middle of the ocean which looks like the prison in the story where Icarus dad’s Daedalus is being held prisoner. The building is painted with a gray-black color. It looks old and weary but not too tall. From the front where the sand can be seeing it looks like the entrance to the prison. From the left of the painting , their is a big brown boat with a lot of design. It has a something that look like a port trait on top of it. The boat is one of the biggest object in the painting which stands as a barrier that does not let the sun shines to the left where Icarus is. The boat is decorated with beige sail which from the look of it it’s letting the wind lead its way and from the look of the sail it looks really windy. So in other not to crash the boat has to go with the flow which is something that Icarus did not do. He was trying to find his own way, his own direction and that leads him at the bottom of the sea. look. Behind the big boat, a man leg can be seeing; I guess this must be Icarus drowning because of his wanting to make his own route. Another thing that got my attention was the ploughman with the bright red blouse, gray dress with a black hair and hat. He is letting himself lead by the horse as they work together to provides foods. Throughout the painting, It is only on this man that this red , vivify color is found through the whole painting. Another huge object that takes a great amount of the painting is the sun. it looks so this picture took a big part of the painting. After this, the sun took my attention away so powerful with it’s vibrant, yellow color in the middle of the painting. In “The Story of Daedalus and Icarus” the sun is the reason why Icarus fell into the water. With his man-made wings made by Daedalus. The wings was hold together by wax. Icarus wasn’t careful at all because despite his father advice of not “flying too close to the sky”. Icarus flew really high; so close to the which ended up by melting the wax that was holding his wings together. The background of the painting, from left and right a mix of the color brown, silver black and gray can be found. Also buildings can be seeing from the left and to the right too with different height and shape. At the right, it looks like a colonize place with fancy looking architecture design but it is less bright that the middle of the painting. From the left their are mountains maybe glacier; so no one lives there. Just like the right, the left is less brighter. It is only in the middle of the painting bright colors are used. The difference can clearly be seeing where Icarus is drowning. It is darker and less calm than in the center of the painting. The sea look like it has been disturbed, and on top of the water there are a lot of feathers around. In the front of the painting, the earth landscape is situated with a big tree at the right and a shepherd with a black ponytail, a blue shirt and a black pants and shoes. He is holding a stick in his hand. He is looking away from Icarus drowning in the ocean. I feel like he’s saying this is not my business, so I better stay away from it. Right besides thee shepherd is a dogs. In front and behind the shepherds sheep will be found. There are twenty white sheep’s and two black one. On the left , not too far from Icarus, there is a fisherman all in white with a black hat and a black belt. Just like both workers prior him, his head is down not giving a care about Icarus. He is too busy doing his work. In the middle of the ocean, because the sun is reflecting upon the water it is brighter. Five boats can be seeing in the middle. And not too far from the boat the melting wax can be seeing. Looking at the picture as a whole, I see the three man mentioned in the story have a lot of common. First, they all turn their cheeks away from Icarus. Second, all work with an animal that provides food for them. And third they all tying to live their simple life by feeding of nature. This show how much belief those men where putting in the god of nature because they provided them food. Icarus on the other hands contradict the god by doing think that made the god felt threatened. That is why the God decided to silent him and teach a lesson to whomever who pull up another behavior like Icarus. To conclude, this piece of work is just amazing because what Bruegel took Ovid’s piece of writing and tells the story through a painting. As I was describing the painting, it feels the story is not even about Icarus. It goes deeper than that. It expresses a life lesson telling each individual to not life neither as if it was the end of the world or too excited because you will crash in between and it will not be pretty. Bruegel shows all four element of life which are: the sun, the earth, the wind and the water. He show their importance through the story of Icarus and the mentioning of the three work man. This painting isn’t just a story but an everyday life experience where advice are offer by elderly but young adult just ignores it.